Recommending Committal to Prison (Council Tax)

BimboDonnax

My Mum has been in receipt of the following letter from "Equita"

RECOMMENDING COMMITTAL TO PRISON

Dear Miss XXXXX

Magistrates Liability Order Dated: 11/09/2007
For Outstanding: Council Tax
Due to Bradford Metropolitan Borough Council

Equita Certifcated Baliffs have been instructed to seize your goods and sell tham at Public Auction in order to discharge the above debt.

To date you have failed to settle the outstanding amount and unless full payment is received immediately, we shall have no alternative but to recommend to to out client that

COMMITTAL TO PRISON PROCEEDINGS IS COMMENCED AGAINST YOU.

Yours Sincerely

Robert Langley
Equita Limited

My Mum has been making payments every month to the baliffs however of late the last 5 weeks she has fallen behind as her main track of concentration as been on her house as she could be losing it - an I have come back form London to try and help wth everything that is going on and trying to get these (Equita) off her back to give her some leaway.

We have called and explained the minimum payment they require £47 for the month was not able to be met but could pay £20, after the person on the phone going on and ontrying to negotiate , he eventually forced me up to paying the £47 the last time. Which left Mum completley short. (Thay are so clever!) I asked if there was apaymet plan that we could make and they snubbed this out saying we had to bring the balance down to a certain amount before this could be done.

Anyway like I say she has fallen behind and she recieves the above letter, can they really do this?

I am trying my best to help Mum, but I have no idea where we stand on this,

Any help would be apprecaited greatly.

Confused_Newbie

Sorry cant really offer any advice on this one but hopefully someone more knowledgeable will be along soon

fermi

Scare tactics by the bailiff by the sounds of it. If there are genuine reasons why you cannot settle the bill in full, then any attempt by the council to do this would be thrown out.

From: Can I be sent to prison for not paying my Council Tax?

Can I be sent to prison for not paying my Council Tax?

In very rare cases your local Council may apply to the Magistrates' Court for a warrant committing you to prison in the event of non payment of Council Tax. The Council will only ever take this step when all other efforts have failed. This would include failed bailiff visits.

Before issuing a warrant of commitment the court must hold a 'means enquiry' and you must be present. You will be sent a Summons to appear. If you fail to answer to the Summons the Council will, in most cases, request that a warrant for arrest be granted. Depending on the circumstances this will be with or without bail. When you attend a 'means enquiry' you will be required to complete a very simple Income & Expenditure Calculation so that the Magistrate is able to agree an affordable level of re-payment.

A Warrant of Commitment will only be issued if the court is satisfied that the failure to pay is the result of wilful refusal or culpable neglect. This would not be the case if you cannot afford the debt. The maximum period of imprisonment is three months.
A recent Human Rights Case from the European Court that confirms that local authorities must look at all other available options before considering imprisonment.

Note:
We have received many reports that bailiffs collecting council tax have either stated at the door or by letter that unless the entire debt is paid in full or that you allow the bailiff into your home to remove goods, that he is going to the court to apply for you to be taken to prison. This is nonsense and the bailiff has no such power. He is using this threat as a means of either making you pay straight away or making you borrow the money instead.

Also have a look through.

Factsheet | Bailiffs & Council Tax

It might be best to get her to talk to National Debtline free on 0808 808 4000. They should be able to help her work out the best way to approach this.

Bismarck

no wonder they're talking about overcrowded prisons.....yes take the payment issue seriously BUT...prison? how many people have they sent down for non-payment...this has to be scare tactics

BimboDonnax

I know - it is a bit harsh! But tjis is the letter I am going to send them and also send to the council so at least one cant say to the other we were not aware etc (if that makes sence)

What do you think of my letter:

Date: 13/06/2008

To whom this may concern,

I am writing to you in regards to the following account:

Bailiff Ref: XXXXX
Pin: XXXXXX

Miss XXXXX
(This is where I have put the address of the account)

I have been in receipt of your letter stating your recommendation of committal to prison.

I would like to make you aware that I have on several occasions tried to make arrangements with yourselves but have been advised that this cannot be done unless I can make my balance reach a certain amount.

I understand that I have fallen behind on my last payment and I am trying to work out how this can be fixed.

At present I am unable to make payments to the amount you are requesting as I have not been in receipt of any salary from my employer for almost 6 weeks. I am currently on long term sick with my employer and they have not been banking my salary and I have not been paid any statutory sick pay either, thus making keeping up to what you require very difficult.

The only option I have at the moment is to make a steady monthly arrangement of £10 per month until my regular income starts coming in again, as soon as I am able to, I can then make arrangements to have this outstanding debt paid off in bigger instalments.

Could you please also advise in writing of the FULL outstanding amount as it did not state in your previous letter.

Your prompt response in this matter would be greatly appreciated.

Kind Regards.

Miss XXXXXX

kel123_2

The key word is recomend Stop panicing!

Has the Bailiff been in the house, as you mum signed a working posession, has she got a document that list items and she has signed it?

Hold off your letter for a while it may need amending.

fermi

I think you should get her (or you) to speak to a professional debt advisor before you start firing off letters.

See: Non-profit Debt Counsellors' List

That way you will be able to get the best approach from the start.

BimboDonnax

fermi wrote: »

I think you should get her (or you) to speak to a professional debt advisor before you start firing off letters.

See: Non-profit Debt Counsellors' List

That way you will be able to get the best approach from the start.

Bummer, I have just sent it as I have just recieved this response form Consumer Direct:



Dear Miss Gregson
Thank you for your enquiry to Consumer Direct dated 11/06/08. Your reference number for this case is NW-426662 and should be quoted in all further correspondence regarding this case.
Based on the information you have provided the key legal points in response to your enquiry are as follows:
You have received a letter friom Equita stating they are recommending your commital to prison for an outstanding Council Tax bill.
Non-payment of council tax is not a criminal offence. However, a local authority may apply to the magistrate for a person to be committed to prison if a bailiff has been unable to find sufficient goods to seize in order to meet the debt. The magistrate may only issue a warrant of commitment if the non-payment is due to wilful refusal (i.e. you are saying 'I will not pay') or culpable neglect on the part of the council tax payer.
If you are willing to pay, and have been making payments, it is unlikely that you would be committed to prison. However we would strongly advise that you send Equita and the council recorded delivery letters, outlining everything to date. Make it very clear that you are willing to pay and wish to discuss setting up a formal payment plan. It is also worth retaining copies of everything sent, for your records.
You should also contact National Debtline on 0808 808 4000 as soon as possible. This is a national telephone helpline for people with debt problems in England, Wales and Scotland. The specialist advice given over the telephone is backed up with written self-help materials and they can assist in setting up Debt Management Plans. The service is free, confidential and independent.
If you require any further advice or information about this case, please do not hesitate to contact Consumer Direct on 08454 04 05 06 quoting the case reference number.
Thank you for your enquiry.

kel123_2

agreed firmi

But the op needs to be sure of what paperwork has been issued and understand the consequences if she is to proceed

My advice then would be to contact NDL and get their advice.

My case with the bailiff(s) has been before the Judge and he has decided that there is a case to answer and it is in court next week

BimboDonnax

kel123 wrote: »

agreed firmi

But the op needs to be sure of what paperwork has been issued and understand the consequences if she is to proceed

Sorry I am still a bit rubbish with this - but what is or who is OP?

kel123_2

Original Poster i.e BimboDonnax