Council Tax - Court Summons

aussiee1234

CIS wrote: »

Paying each month isn't enough, payment must also be received by the due date to prevent you losing the right to pay by instalments.

If you think you aren't liable for the charge for a particular period you need to contact the council but in the meantime the money is due until such time as your council tax is adjusted.

what do you mean paying each month isn't enough? isn't that the whole point...to pay it monthly and on time?.

I literally don't have the money to pay it all off, so would I be able to set up installments?

booksurr

aussiee1234 wrote: »

what do you mean paying each month isn't enough? isn't that the whole point...to pay it monthly and on time?.

I literally don't have the money to pay it all off, so would I be able to set up installments?

it means what it says, if the payment is due on the 1st of each month and you instead pay it on the 2nd you have paid late and depending on the attitude of your council they will remove your right to pay by instalments and demand the whole lot in one go

the "fact" you say you cannot afford a lump sum payment is your problem not theirs. Either you get a loan so you can pay it or you negotiate - your choice

aussiee1234

booksurr wrote: »

it means what it says, if the payment is due on the 1st of each month and you instead pay it on the 2nd you have paid late and depending on the attitude of your council they will remove your right to pay by instalments and demand the whole lot in one go

the "fact" you say you cannot afford a lump sum payment is your problem not theirs. Either you get a loan so you can pay it or you negotiate - your choice

firstly, i have paid all of them on time, not a day late. secondly I am here on a working visa, I can't get a loan lol.
and the 'fact' they want me to pay from February (before i was even in the uk) is a little odd.

also, hell yeah it's my problem, but you see the fact they want me to pay it and I can't then makes it their problem too.

ashtonwn4

@ CIS

I totally agree with what you're saying. If a payment is due on the 1st and you pay on the 2nd then you are to all intents and purposes late. No arguments. However, I have yet to encounter a company who would consider 1 day being late. 1 week maybe, but not 1 day.

booksurr

aussiee1234 wrote: »

firstly, i have paid all of them on time, not a day late. secondly I am here on a working visa, I can't get a loan lol.
and the 'fact' they want me to pay from February (before i was even in the uk) is a little odd.

also, hell yeah it's my problem, but you see the fact they want me to pay it and I can't then makes it their problem too.

please can you explain your situation in more detail

for you to have received a summons means the council regards you as having not paid your council tax - what have they said?

if they are claiming that you owe money for the period from Feb 14 to Apr 14 and you can obviously show you were not yet in the UK at that time then the council has made a mistake and you need to write to them proving your dates and asking them to withdraw the summons. If it is their mistake then you have a good chance of also getting the court costs rescinded.

if the council say you owe money post Apr 14 but you say you have paid on time (not even one day late) then someone has their records wrong. Either you have used the wrong payment reference so they can't match payment to bill or they have made a mistake internally. Again either way can only be resolved by dialogue.



what you regard as being reasonable for late payments in the commercial world is irrelevant in terms of tax collection. For tax you pay on/before the day due or it is late, end of discussion.

Robin9

OP You say that you were not a "resident" until April 14- were you here on a visa or permit and were you living in the property ?

lincroft1710

aussiee1234 wrote: »

and the 'fact' they want me to pay from February (before i was even in the uk) is a little odd.

If the property you currently live in was owned by you from February, or you agreed a lease or tenancy which ran from February, then in Council Tax law you are responsible for paying the Council Tax for February and March.

lincroft1710

ashtonwn4 wrote: »

However I have yet to encounter a company who would consider 1 day being late. 1 week maybe, but not 1 day.

Councils are not companies.

DeeplyConfused_1977

Hi all,

Hoping you can advise I received a letter yesterday stating a liability order had been granted by the courts as I had not paid my council tax, I had sent the DD form back but stupidly didn't check the monies were being taken. Anyways I now have £125 administration fees plus £8 for something I don't know the Council officer was vague on this cost, I did receive a first reminder and paid online thinking the DD was in the process of being setup (again being stupid I know) but a second reminder never appeared and definitely no court summons. I asked today was the letter I received the final notice only to told NO the liability order had been granted. How can this happen and is there a way I check with the courts? The website for said council says a Court Summons will be received, hence my confusion on this whole matter, the council said they sent a second reminder in June but nothing around the summons.

Anybody got any ideas?

Thanks

CIS

The website for said council says a Court Summons will be received, hence my confusion on this whole matter, the council said they sent a second reminder in June but nothing around the summons.

They only have to have correctly posted it - not receiving it is not a defence (unless you can prove the council knew you didn't receive it).

I did receive a first reminder and paid online thinking the DD was in the process of being setup (again being stupid I know) but a second reminder never appeared and definitely no court summons.

Second reminders aren't always required - it depends when payment was made compared to when it was due.