Being screwed by council tax

Great_Bitain

Hi,
Can someone please offer some advise.
I have been receiving threatening demands for Council Tax for money that I clearly do not owe.
I have been a single person for over two years, have informed the Council by letter, email & application form, that I am living as a single person but they just pretend to play the dumb game & keep issuing demands for FULL Council Tax. I live alone in my own property.
I have paid my FULL Council Tax liability up to & including December 2015.

I was made unemployed in mid December 2015, claimed JSA until February 2016, then claimed Carers Allowance & Income Support. I have fully informed the Council of the situation but they seem to be total idiots in understanding the information I am giving them.

They have been sending me demands for the full council tax for over TWO years.
And even now, this year, when they know I am on Carers Allowance & Income Support they are demanding the full years Council Tax.( I have personally handed them the claim/award letters from CA & IS & the benefit application form).

Apparently, they went to Court( I DID NOT RECEIVE A COURT DATE/SUMMONS) & obtained a Court Order to remove my property if I did not pay this years full council tax & the last two years also!.
Had I received the summons I would have gone to Court & put all the evidence/proof in front of the courts, but this has happened behind my back.

Is it true that if I am in receipt of CARERS ALLOWANCE & INCOME SUPPORT I am 100% exempt form paying the Council Tax???
Also, last two years I have been living as a single person & have filled in application form to claim single person discount, but still the Council are demanding FULL payment???
Or will I still have this chain around my neck until I starve to death.

Can anyone offer some advise.:(

Torry_Quine

Its not automatically true that getting carer's allowance and IS gives you 100% council tax relief. Every council has their own criteria as to any reductions so you need to check what the situation is with yours

thorsoak

TAKE all your documentation to the Council offices and talk to someone there, face to face. Explain (politely and calmly) that you have been single for the past two years (give evidence if you can) and leave photocopies with whomsoever you talk to - getting a signed receipt for the documentation.

FBaby

Are you sure they've got you at the right address?

kingfisherblue

If you are on CA and IS, you should receive council tax benefit (your CT should be reduced), but you might still have to pay something. It used to be that anyone in receipt of IS was completely exempt, but this changed a few years ago, and each council can set it's own criteria.

I am a single person on CA and IS. I receive a reduction for:
*Disability discount - because we have a separate wetroom for my disabled son (our band rating is reduced from C to
*Single person discount (I beleive it is 25%. My two sons are still in full time education, so they don't count for CT purposes)
*Council Tax benefit - I don't think it is called this any more, but can't remember the name. My CT is reduced because I am on a low income.

Make sure that you have everything in order, and if possible, write a timeline of who you have spoken to, what was said, when you have sent in proof and what it was, etc. Keep it brief, so that you can refer to it easily. Go into your CT office, preferably first thing in the morning (ours gets really busy by 9.15am). Be prepared to be there for a while. If possible, ring beforehand and ask for an appointment with a senior CT officer.

Remember to ask for a copy of the council's complaints procedure if you are prepared to make a formal complaint.

tomtom256

Have you actually applied for council tax reduction?

Telling them your income and applying for a reduction are two different things.

Unless you have completed an application form they will keep chasing you.

Alice_Holt

In addition to the points above (such as applying for Council Tax reduction).

1) Ask about backdating CTr as you had made the council aware that you were in receipt of an Income based benefit.

2) Ask for discretionary help with your council tax.Even if you are not entitled to full CTR under your local authority's scheme, your authority still has the power to reduce your council tax bill further or to cancel it altogether. Your local authority will normally only do this if you can show that you are suffering exceptional harship, possibility because of illness, disability or other difficult circumstances. If you are in this situation you should ask your local authority for help and be prepared to provide evidence of your circumstances.

3) Get Debt advice re the Court Order. Try stepchange - https://www.stepchange.org/

4) If you can't resolve this with the council officials, contact your local councillor.

5) Keep copies / dates / receipts etc of all documents / dealings with your council.

6) Right of Appeal. (For which you will need the evidence collected at stage 5) If your local authority refuses to provide further help you may be able to appeal to a Valuation Tribunal. The Tribunal has power to order an authority to reduce, or even cancel, your council bill. Information about how to appeal is available on the Valuation Tribunal's website at https://www.valuationtribunal.gov.uk.

Alice_Holt

In your post you state...
"I have paid my FULL Council Tax liability up to & including December 2015.".

And..."obtained a Court Order to remove my property if I did not pay this years full council tax & the last two years also!."

When you get an apptointment with a senior council official, take proof of payment of CT for these last 2 years, and ask if the court order can be revoked if it has been obtained using incorrect debt info.

poppasmurf_bewdley

Even if you receive Council Tax Benefit, you will have to pay something towards it. How much depends on your council, as each council now make their own rules.

Mersey_2

Email a complaint to the Council's Benefits Dept (and the Chief Exec if you feel it's necessary).


Sadly errors are all too commonplace and a lot of CT correspondence is auto ie computer generated. This sounds like maladministration. [Keep a record of costs you've incurred and time spent, in terms of calls, emails, letters, copying docs and so on]


It may be that they think you're a carer for someone in your home - but who knows, the DWP admitted numerous data matching errors to the Public Accounts Committee earlier this week.


The email complaint to the Benefits Dept should at least put any overpayment recovery/enforcement on hold. Often these are separate council depts. and unless the benefits division emails them, they will continue to enforce the matter.

CIS

regarding post #7 - the valuation tribunal can only consider a section 13A write off where the council have already refused it and you appeal it on the basis that the refusal was unfair. |For a single person discount they can only consider a matter of fact and whether they believe entitlement still exists and the council were wrong.

At the moment the council tax is correct in law - where the Council Tax reduction is removed then that doesn't alter the fact that a balance is now due. The court have no jurisdiction over this at the liability order hearing so cannot rule on your entitlement to Council Tax reduction.

The court also have no jurisdiction over single person discounts - regulation 57 of the council tax (administration & enforcement) regulations 1992 prevents them having this.

To have got to this stage though there would have been a demand notice and at least one reminder/final notice before the summons was issued. It then takes another 14 days minimum before the liability order hearing could occur. Did you check at the time the demand notice was received as to what had happened ?.