Council Tax in Bankruptcy

soapboxfury

I fear that there is prob. an out for the local council on this one as they seem to be above the law but here goes in the hope that someone can advise on this one.

My wife went BR on the 16th July 07
I have no income at all and, therefore, am listed as a dependent.

We are not feeling very charitable towards the council at present as they have hassled us continuously for the last 9 yrs after I got some prominent employees sacked.

And I mean hassle......................I own 2 many cars, My back fence (established by the council 30yrs ago) is too high, A replacement front porch need planing consent, A garden shed needed PC, I was running a business from home (Bettaware) so I needed PC, My dustbins (3 in total) where in the wrong place. I could go on but this is not the reason for this post................Suffice to say that the local authority finally made my wife BR for a debt that she doesn't owe. So charitable we are NOT.

As I understand it all debts that occurred before BR are taken into account by the OR.

Council tax is billed at the beginning of the tax year and demanded in full

Some folk then pay the bill by agreed instalments but the bill is due in full from the due date and, on default of a payment plan they demand full payment OR ELSE!

How then is it that they have now sent my wife an amended tax bill that starts the day after her BR and doesn't even take into account the rebate that was eventually awarded after 3 yrs of fighting for it before they finally admitted that they had made a mistook?

Are the council exempt from what appears to be normal BR practice?

Is there anyway that we can tell them to Foxtrot Oscar in short, sharp, jerky military movements?

Please show me a way to stuff them on this one?

Sorry about the rant but I am in grave danger of becoming the first serial killer in history to indiscriminately kill off my local officials

Richard_S

Hi sbf,

I'm not sure how the rebate affects the situation but unfortunately they're within their rights to raise an ammended bill starting the day after your wife's bankruptcy.

We had leased retail premises and when we vacated them they insisted that the rates were still payable. We had to involve the O.R who made a submission (can't remember the name of the legal instrument) in court to negate the council's demand for payment.

Best wishes in your crusade but I don't think this one will yield any worthwhile results.

Richard

moyilla

Richard_S wrote: »

Hi sbf,

I'm not sure how the rebate affects the situation but unfortunately they're within their rights to raise an ammended bill starting the day after your wife's bankruptcy.

We had leased retail premises and when we vacated them they insisted that the rates were still payable. We had to involve the O.R who made a submission (can't remember the name of the legal instrument) in court to negate the council's demand for payment.

Best wishes in your crusade but I don't think this one will yield any worthwhile results.

Richard

Hello Richard

Can I ask if the OR's action taken on your behalf is applicable for council tax on homes? I ask because I included this in my order but now I have a deduction of over £22 a week from my benefit.

Now another mess up for this years bill - I have been paying the required amount just got the dates wrong - and I am currently waiting on a summons from the local authority for the full amount.

I am really anxious now as I am worrying about having to go to court - would this happen?

I have written a letter to the head of the services explaining our situation but no reply yet.

Thanks

wherediditallgo

Hi moyilla,

Council Tax is billed at the beginning of the year, but if you choose to pay by instalments then you're only liable for what was due up to the point the next instalment is due - if you don't pay on time, then as you say they ask for the full balance. From what I can make out, the reason they've sent the revised bill is because your wife was late in paying the instalments on the account, so the balance became due. BR can't wipe out a debt that didn't technically exist (because of the instalment plan), so the council can't recover what was due up to the date your wife went BR, but they can ask for the balance due from the next day to be paid. I know it feels really unfair & a way of them to get money they shouldn't, but this is the way it was explained to me.

Once a creditor has been contacted by the OR, they'll usually reply confirming the amount of the debt owed to them. The rebate may have been deducted from that amount, so they're wanting the rest of it from your wife. I would send them a copy of any letters you've got regarding the rebate, as it may be that the rebate hasn't been taken into account. However, regardless of the rebate issue, if they've asked her for the balance of the year's Council Tax rather than the whole year's, then I don't think you're going to get anywhere by protesting about it. Sorry.

Rafter

Given that the official receiver will have allowed for the council tax payment when arriving at any income payments order then you can't have it both ways unfortunately..... unless your wifes earnings don't even cover your basic household expenses?

As for Council planning departments, don't get me started. My garden shed and modest deck all need permission apparently after a neighbour complained. 4 months and £200 later it looks like they are going to approve it anyway - what a waste of time and money!

R.

moyilla

Can I do anything about the situation before it was to go to court?

I can pay the required installment's, it's just I got my date's mixed up.

I had rang when I got the letter but they said I had now lost my right to pay via installments so I need to wait on the summons.

Richard_S

moyilla wrote: »

Hello Richard

Can I ask if the OR's action taken on your behalf is applicable for council tax on homes? I ask because I included this in my order but now I have a deduction of over £22 a week from my benefit.

Now another mess up for this years bill - I have been paying the required amount just got the dates wrong - and I am currently waiting on a summons from the local authority for the full amount.

I am really anxious now as I am worrying about having to go to court - would this happen?

I have written a letter to the head of the services explaining our situation but no reply yet.

Thanks

Hi moyilla,

We didn't have a problem with the Council Tax it was the Commercial Rates that we had to refer to the O.R.

The council were unhelpful at best and it was obvious we weren't going to get anywhere with them; they just wouldn't listen to us. The O.R couldn't have been more helpful and the council had to listen to them.

If you've got any problems at all with your Council Tax I'd definitely consult your O.R. They know exactly what your creditors rights and obligations are and act on your behalf accordingly.

The O.R is acting on behalf of your creditors but only within the letter of the law; if somebody is trying to take advantage of you then the O.R will apply the laws that are there to protect the debtor too.

Regards

Richard

moyilla

Thank you Richard,

I have been told that I could not appeal the overpayment so that has been deducted since June.
But obviously with this years bill they want to add £80 court costs on top.

So, do you think the OR could assist with this years bill? I honestly thought I was getting somewhere but feel that everything is creeping up on me again and I am really worried now

Richard_S

moyilla wrote: »

Thank you Richard,

I have been told that I could not appeal the overpayment so that has been deducted since June.
But obviously with this years bill they want to add £80 court costs on top.

So, do you think the OR could assist with this years bill? I honestly thought I was getting somewhere but feel that everything is creeping up on me again and I am really worried now

Hi moyilla,

I think it's more than likely they can assist. There's loads of anecdotal advice on sites like this but quite often one person's experience is not exactly the same as others, and that difference can affect the outcome.

Your O.R will have all the details from your file and their advice should be accurate based on your individual circumstances.

I'm sorry to hear that things are creeping up on you. We all have bad days but please try to keep things in perspective; bankruptcy is not an easy route but it will ultimately give you your life back.

Keep believing and keep smiling; just burst into a manical fit of laughter and you'll feel better immediately.:D :rotfl:

Richard

soapboxfury

Grrrrrrrrrrrrr

Oh well thanks guys