Recieved a summons for non payment of council tax

Timasher

My Wife and I are the property owners. Our last tenants gave up the tenancy and left the beginning Feb 2024 but had paid the full 10 instalments April 2023 to Jan 2024 therefore paying for Feb and March 2024  ie the full years amounts as there are only 10 no unsettlements.

 

The council have chased us as owners for Feb and March 2024 but we have told them the previous tenants have paid the full year’s amount and therefore the council are owned nothing but they have issued us a summons

 

Are the council within their rights to issue a summons for 2 months council tax if the pervious tenants have paid it. ?

swingaloo

How certain are you that they have paid for 12 months. I pay my council tax in 12 monthly payments so do not get Feb and March free. 

Timasher

swingaloo said:

How certain are you that they have paid for 12 months. I pay my council tax in 12 monthly payments so do not get Feb and March free. 

Where we live there are only 10 installemnts for the whole year

Silvertabby

Timasher said:

swingaloo said:

How certain are you that they have paid for 12 months. I pay my council tax in 12 monthly payments so do not get Feb and March free. 

Where we live there are only 10 installemnts for the whole year

But 12 months are often an option for those who say they find it easier to budget over 12 slightly smaller payments.

Brie

Timasher said:

swingaloo said:

How certain are you that they have paid for 12 months. I pay my council tax in 12 monthly payments so do not get Feb and March free. 

Where we live there are only 10 installemnts for the whole year

Where I live there's the option to pay in 10 or 12 instalments.  And if you go for 10 then it's January and Feb that are free working on the principle that people have lots of bills to pay for Christmas.  

Maybe the tenants did pay for the full year but then got a refund when they started paying at a different address??

Timasher

Silvertabby said:

Timasher said:

swingaloo said:

How certain are you that they have paid for 12 months. I pay my council tax in 12 monthly payments so do not get Feb and March free. 

Where we live there are only 10 installemnts for the whole year

But 12 months are often an option for those who say they find it easier to budget over 12 slightly smaller payments.

Silvertabby said:

Timasher said:

swingaloo said:

How certain are you that they have paid for 12 months. I pay my council tax in 12 monthly payments so do not get Feb and March free. 

Where we live there are only 10 installemnts for the whole year

But 12 months are often an option for those who say they find it easier to budget over 12 slightly smaller payments.

They have paid the full amount for the whole year. So are the council whinin thier rights to send us a summons

sheramber

Are you sure the two months were not refunded by the council if they were notified that the tenants moved to a different address. 

The repayment may have been issued autoMatically.

If the has happened , then yes you are liable for these two months. 

theoretica

Probably yes the council are correct.  As the owners of a property without tenants, you are liable for those two months. If the tenants have not already done so, they could seek a refund for their overpayment, the council can't just keep their money against your bill.  But as the council are aware that the tenants were not liable for those two months of council tax, it seems likely that they have indeed been refunded (or credited to their new address), or how would the council know?

HillStreetBlues

What council?

mebu60

Presumably the tenants applied for a refund or a credit towards a new address otherwise how would the council know to approach you as the owners for the period in question? 

Timasher

HillStreetBlues said:

What council?

North Somerset