Council Tax - Demand for £0.00

rog2

Looks like a result UF, but I wouldn't open the door to any strange looking men for the next week or so. :rotfl: :rotfl:

pandapaws

Aw, shame!

While I'm glad that you've got it sorted, I'm also disappointed - I was kind of hoping that the baillifs would turn up on your doorstep and give you the pleasure of making them wait while you went through all your pockets, wallet, drawers etc to try and find the exact amount to hand over to them. Or you could have said you didn't have the cash and they'd have to remove items from your house - and proceed to shed the odd sentimental tear while handing over invisible objects with strict instructions on how to transport/store them!

I got a credit card bill last week for an account that I recently cleared in full, which showed an outstanding balance of £0.01p on it. I took great delight in ringing to pay by debit card and requesting that they send a printed receipt for the transaction in the post!

nopot2pin

Loved the turning up at the council offices with the cheque for £0.00... would do so with the local press in tow though... Or a camcorder... and send it to the BBC / ITV.... its gotta be entertainment value for council employees if nothing else
Make you wonder what the receipt would say... ie... what cost for what

brooksey246

Hi,

I've had the same problem with bailiffs and the local authority.

I came home to a letter advising me that if I didn't cough up 1100 within 4 hours the bailiff was coming it to clean out my flat..!!!!

I rang the bailiff and tried to organise some payment scheme with him (I live in a rented flat and thought for the first year the council tax was in with my rent)......I never had any letters from the council until this landed on my mat..!!! oh and advising me that there was a warrant out for my arrest..!!

anyway...he wouldn't let me make payments on a monthly basis but did extend till the end of the month....I think the fact that I was a crying wreak down the phone did it...

So next day pulled myself together and did some research and was amazed to find out what I did... here we go..

A bailiff can not enter your property unless they have been inside before - NEVER LET THEM IN, not even to use the loo or owt...you go outside to them and lock the doors behind you. don't sign anything either
A bailiff can only gain access to your property if you leav the windows or doors open - they have the right to gain access
they can not use the police to gain access.
They can not take any goods that can effect your means of life IE bed clothes.... they can take washers but if removal of the goods would effect your work then they have to leave it.....
If you can prove that you don't own anything in the house then they can't take diddly squat....get a mate to do you a reciept or agreement that they actually own the stuff and you are loaning it off them
if you ring the council and ask them to take the debt back - THEY HAVE TO DO THIS... bye bye bailiffs...


needless to say that I contacted the council, they took the debt back under installments and they dealt with the bailiffs as I refused to.... as long as no payments are defaulted then everthing will be ok

I found all this info on the national debt website....really good stuff

hope this helps anyone but I'm that pleased that I didn't get screwed over I need to tell people..!!!

Thanks

moneymare

brooksey246 wrote: »

Hi,

I've had the same problem with bailiffs and the local authority.

I came home to a letter advising me that if I didn't cough up 1100 within 4 hours the bailiff was coming it to clean out my flat..!!!!

I rang the bailiff and tried to organise some payment scheme with him (I live in a rented flat and thought for the first year the council tax was in with my rent)......I never had any letters from the council until this landed on my mat..!!! oh and advising me that there was a warrant out for my arrest..!!

anyway...he wouldn't let me make payments on a monthly basis but did extend till the end of the month....I think the fact that I was a crying wreak down the phone did it...

So next day pulled myself together and did some research and was amazed to find out what I did... here we go..

A bailiff can not enter your property unless they have been inside before - NEVER LET THEM IN, not even to use the loo or owt...you go outside to them and lock the doors behind you. don't sign anything either
A bailiff can only gain access to your property if you leav the windows or doors open - they have the right to gain access
they can not use the police to gain access.
They can not take any goods that can effect your means of life IE bed clothes.... they can take washers but if removal of the goods would effect your work then they have to leave it.....
If you can prove that you don't own anything in the house then they can't take diddly squat....get a mate to do you a reciept or agreement that they actually own the stuff and you are loaning it off them
if you ring the council and ask them to take the debt back - THEY HAVE TO DO THIS... bye bye bailiffs...


needless to say that I contacted the council, they took the debt back under installments and they dealt with the bailiffs as I refused to.... as long as no payments are defaulted then everthing will be ok

I found all this info on the national debt website....really good stuff

hope this helps anyone but I'm that pleased that I didn't get screwed over I need to tell people..!!!

Thanks

Good info, apart from the highlighted text - not true, I'm afraid. The Council do not have to take the debt back - it is at their discretion.

nealallen

Another thing that's wrong there. If you can prove that you don't own anything in the house then they can't take diddly squat....get a mate to do you a reciept or agreement that they actually own the stuff and you are loaning it off them Getting a friend to give you a receipt to say you have the goods on loan won't work I'm affraid. Anything that's in your home is levied on it. Would make no difference.

brooksey246

in red is the information that is on the national debt website

CAN THE BAILIFFS TAKE THINGS WHICH ARE NOT MINE?
The bailiffs can only take goods belonging to you if you are named on the liability order. This means that if the Council Tax debt is just in your name, the bailiff should not take goods which are owned jointly with someone else. If they want to take goods that belong to someone else (your children, partner, lodgers, etc.) explain that the goods do not belong to you. If you can, show a receipt or note as proof. The owner of the goods may have to provide a sworn statement in the form of a 'statutory declaration' to say this is the case.

To me that reads that if you've got a good enough mate to sign the declaration form then they can not take the goods.

Herbie21

Just to correct a few points. The Council DO NOT have to take the debt back. By obtaining a Liability Order, they have the legal right to pass the debt to bailiffs.

OWNERSHIP OF GOODS.

We have had so many complaints that bailiffs IGNORE your argument that goods do not belong to you.

It should be noted that in just 1 case in 100 will bailiff's"actually" remove household items. It is the THREAT that they can remove them that they rely upon.

With cars outside a property, sadly they are being removed ALL of the time. Just yesterday we had cases of 3 cars being removed by bailifs. One was a brother's vehicle. Another a wife's and in the third case a car belonging to a room mate in a shared house.

Law abiding bailiff's........I don't think so.

Uncle_Fester_2

brooksey246 wrote: »

oh and advising me that there was a warrant out for my arrest..!!

On what charge???