Council tax bill not forwarded on

theeasylife

Hello everybody,

Any similar experience or experts help would be really appreciated.

I own a house which I rent out and live at a separate address. For two weeks of me owning the property but before the tenant moved in a bill arose for council tax. We had paid all council tax prior to this date. Unfortunately the new bill was sent to the tenant address and she never passed it on. She was sent several more including a court summons and she didn't pass these on either. The result was that I got a call from her yesterday saying bailiffs were at the door threatening to take her car. I paid the bailiffs but now I want to clear my name and if possible recover the inflated fees of court and bailiffs.

When I phoned the council they told me my wife has said to use the rental house for correspondence but she says this did not happen and I have a letter from them to my primary address so they definitely have it on file.

three points,

Firstly admit that we owe the £65 council tax (not once did we see a bill)

Secondly the money paid in total yesterday (£450) is not a disaster for us I'm most concerned about the magistrates court liability order either affecting credit/criminal record etc, is this a reasonable concern?

Thirdly as I didnt received a single bill/reminder/summons, the council have used the wrong address (they say the right one but still have the other on file and a current mobile number that wasn't contacted) am I likely to be able to get this court ruling overturned/money reclaimed?

Many thanks in advance, sorry it's so complicated!

Guest101

theeasylife wrote: »

Hello everybody,

Any similar experience or experts help would be really appreciated.

I own a house which I rent out and live at a separate address. For two weeks of me owning the property but before the tenant moved in a bill arose for council tax. We had paid all council tax prior to this date. Unfortunately the new bill was sent to the tenant address and she never passed it on. - She's not running a post ofice and isnt obliged to pass it on. She was sent several more including a court summons and she didn't pass these on either. The result was that I got a call from her yesterday saying bailiffs were at the door threatening to take her car. - Then she should learn to deal with bailiffs. i.e. not the person named on the court order. So cant take the car. I paid the bailiffs but now I want to clear my name and if possible recover the inflated fees of court and bailiffs. - I dont think you've got much of a case. You knew it was owed.

When I phoned the council they told me my wife has said to use the rental house for correspondence but she says this did not happen and I have a letter from them to my primary address so they definitely have it on file. - Well complain to the council.

three points,

Firstly admit that we owe the £65 council tax (not once did we see a bill) - You knew you owed it though.

Secondly the money paid in total yesterday (£450) is not a disaster for us I'm most concerned about the magistrates court liability order either affecting credit/criminal record etc, is this a reasonable concern? - Yes. It's on public record.

Thirdly as I didnt received a single bill/reminder/summons, the council have used the wrong address (they say the right one but still have the other on file and a current mobile number that wasn't contacted) am I likely to be able to get this court ruling overturned/money reclaimed? - Not likely.

Many thanks in advance, sorry it's so complicated!

I think you need to get your tenant a bottle of wine for the hassle of having to deal with bailiffs threatening her property for your failed bills.

Sorry not what you want to hear I suspect.

ethank

It is your duty to let the Council know your forwarding address. If you can prove that they did not update something with your forwarding address then you may be able to get things reversed.

You could ask the court to reverse the order on the basis that you did not receive the notice, but you would have to make a declaration to the court on why it was not received.

Court is unlikely to be favourable as it is your duty to pay tax due not the Council duty to find you.

theeasylife

Guest 101,

Thanks for your clearly well thought through advice...

No I didn't know we had a bill.

The tenancy agreement (as do most) say that mail concerning the property should be sent to the landlord.

I have complained to the council, I wanted to see if other people had similar experiences to help my case.

All in all thanks for your sarky comments feel free to to respond to me again.

Ethank- genuine thanks for yours, we had paid the council tax up to that date by direct debit but were told to cancel for the month the tenant moved in otherwise an overpayment would be made which would be difficult to claim back. They had our proper address on file but sent it to the tenants address instead. I don't see how if I can be 'tried' in court if I'm not aware of it happening.

theartfullodger

Ah,

...theeasylife..

What does that user name tell us???
...
So you couldn't be ars*d to arrange re-direction from Mssrs Royal Mail??? well, sorry, but that's what happens if you penny-pinch: And, please note, council tax debts are one of the very few you can end up in gaol for...

Guest101

theeasylife wrote: »

Guest 101,

Thanks for your clearly well thought through advice...

No I didn't know we had a bill. - well you must've know some tax was due for the period.

The tenancy agreement (as do most) say that mail concerning the property should be sent to the landlord. - thats not enforceable. Sorry

I have complained to the council, I wanted to see if other people had similar experiences to help my case.

All in all thanks for your sarky comments feel free to to respond to me again.

Ethank- genuine thanks for yours, we had paid the council tax up to that date by direct debit but were told to cancel for the month the tenant moved in otherwise an overpayment would be made which would be difficult to claim back. They had our proper address on file but sent it to the tenants address instead. I don't see how if I can be 'tried' in court if I'm not aware of it happening.

Sorry you felt I was sarky. Just giving realistic answer.

theeasylife

Thanks! as a former serving member of the armed forces completing several tours of Afghanistan/Iraq/Northern Ireland and the Falklands, you tell me how lazy I am???

The whole point is I gave the correct address to the council. And by the way I have visited the property 3 times since the first bill was issued and none of them have been passed on or returned to sender (which I do on a regular basis).

Comments?

G_M

I have more sympathy for the OP than others, though can offer little comfort.

My understanding is that you thought the CT was up to date, but now accept it was not (and hence owed the £65).

as others have said though, relying on tenants to forward mail is not wise. RM forwarding services are far better, & though not 100% reliable, at least one of the reminders/court letters would have reached you.

Relying on a dodgy clause in the tenancy agreement about forwarding post is unwise.

Yes, you are right to be concerned. Had you (known of and) paid the court fees etc immediately following the court hearing you'd have had no adverse record. The fact that you failed to pay as instructed by the court, and bailiffs were required, will affect your record.

I would certainly complain, and present your evidence to the council. They might accept they made errors with the address, and refund your money (though I doubt it). Getting the court record altered will be even harder...........

Guest101

theeasylife wrote: »

Thanks! as a former serving member of the armed forces completing several tours of Afghanistan/Iraq/Northern Ireland and the Falklands, you tell me how lazy I am???

The whole point is I gave the correct address to the council. And by the way I have visited the property 3 times since the first bill was issued and none of them have been passed on or returned to sender (which I do on a regular basis).

Comments?

Yes did u give the tenant correct notice of your visit?

CIS

Yes, you are right to be concerned. Had you (known of and) paid the court fees etc immediately following the court hearing you'd have had no adverse record. The fact that you failed to pay as instructed by the court, and bailiffs were required, will affect your record.

It won't be recorded on the credit record (if it was a CCJ then it would be if payment wasn't made within 28 days but that doesn't apply to a Liability Order, the process is different).

CIS

I would certainly complain, and present your evidence to the council. They might accept they made errors with the address, and refund your money (though I doubt it). Getting the court record altered will be even harder...........

Section 82 of the Local Government Finance Act 2003 allows the council to have a liability order formerly quashed by the court.