‘Bankrupt’ Doncaster Council –Unable to Pay the £150 Rates Rebate

[Deleted User]

Letters are dropping through letter boxes saying that the Treasury of Doncaster Borough Council ‘DBC’ have conducted prepayment checks and have found irregularities that do not allow it to pay money into rate payer’s direct debit accounts. Withdrawing monies in payment for rates appears not to be a problem. The letter asks people to apply by form for the rebate.

Go around the problem: call the rebate line, a recorded message says that due to an extraordinary high demand for the form they have had to temporarily withdraw it.

Go around the problem: call the rates line, a recorded message says that due to an extraordinary high demand for information they have had to temporarily close the line.

A clue to just how DBC has been able to procrastinate in this way is in how the letter was addressed to people. Councils’ need to comply with the law namely The Council Tax (Administration and Enforcement) Regulations 1992 Joint and Several Liability which means all who are resident in property are jointly liable to pay rates: for example, man and wife. Annual rates letters from councils are addressed to both man and wife however in this case the letter was addressed to ‘man’ only.

The direct debit account is in joint names of man and wife however because the pre-check is on ‘man’ only the check fails allowing this council to cite a pre-check failure and avoid bankruptcy.

Is it the man’s fault?

MalMonroe

Hmmmm, it probably IS the man's fault because, well, men - but you could do worse than contact your local councillors and/or your MP and complain.

I have had success with one of my local councillors because she is on the ball and when I contacted her with a problem I had with my local council, she was able to help within a couple of weeks. See if yours can do the same.

We haven't received our money yet and it's really annoying because the government has distributed it to our councils specifically for distribution to we, the public whose homes have been designated within council tax bands A-D. I didn't think there was any 'checking' going on. There shouldn't be, anyway. Only to see what council tax bands we're in.

Spendless

I had a letter from the same council yesterday. They have paid the money in. First correspondence I've received

[Deleted User]

Spendless said:

I had a letter from the same council yesterday. They have paid the money in. First correspondence I've received

The first link which I am reliably informed did mentioned that a large number had been paid. Under the shared liability rule are you able to say whether the letter was addressed to you personally or was it addressed in joint names?

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