Unfair treatment for Council Tax

Question

My sister pays her council tax two weeks after the due date because her maintenance comes in then, she has paid each instalment religiously. Now she has received a court summons for the full amount plus court fees. Does she have any rights or can they do this?

Answer 1

sound unfair to me.  Call the council kick up a stink

Answer 2

Go to the local CAB for free support with this. Basically the council have been over zealous with this, if she has no long term arrears and is also paying (albeit 2 weeks behind) it is important to challenge them.

CAB will either contact the council asking for this to be stopped or get the court case withdrawn. She should also write to her local councillor as this is a disgraceful action and disproportionate by the council  

Answer 3

I cannot see what is unfair.  She may have paid each instalment religiously but it has been relgiously late.  Payment by installments is a privilege not a right.  It is accepted practise that local authorities provide at least one written warning if an installment is paid late.  If this has happened then there are no grounds for complaint.  If it has not happened then the council should be accomodating of the situation.

Answer 4

if she has a written  agreement with the council about paying 2 weeks after the due date, then no, they can"t do it.

if she hasn"t, then i"m sorry they can.

now she"s recieved the court summons, she will have to pay up.

if she doesn"t the debt will be sent to the baliffs, if it gets sent to the baliff, she can actually arrange with them to pay it off at so much a month,but if she misses one payment they will come knocking on her door,and then they will add on there own absolute ridiculous charges ..hope this is of some help to you.

Answer 5

Unfortunately, unless she has her alternative payment schedule agreed in writing then, yes, they have the right to take her to court for the full amount.

For the future she needs to plan her spending so that she has the money to pay at the proper time.  Draw up a statement of income and expenditure with her and work out where small savings can be made.  Maybe get her to cut back on food for a few weeks while she uses up the contents of a freezer or storecupboard.  Aim to have one month's council tax saved by next March.

For now, she really needs to talk to them and explain the position.  If she can show that she has a plan to improve the situation and that in future years she will pay on time then they may agree to her continuing on the present basis for the rest of the year.  Otherwise, if it goes to court make sure she presents this plan in court.  They may well force the council to accept.

Answer 6

Best thing to do is go to your local CAB office and see where she stands......

Answer 7

A Court Summons cannot be issued without a reminder being issued first.

The payment was missed, a reminder would be issued asking for payment within 7 days. The summons would only be issued if this payment was not brought up to date within those 7days.

Providing the procedure has been followed then then Summons has been issued legally.

Answer 8

The rules pertaining to the recovery of council tax as well as the people who administer them are stupid, selfish, pointless, inflexible and counter productive.  Go to court and dispute the costs, I did and I won.

I owed £136 for council tax but fell behind with my payments so they took me to court and demanded £3 court costs and a massive rip off £97 for council tax costs.  I phoned them three times and offered to pay (the bill, not the costs) by direct debit at the rate of £5 per week and they refused.  I went up to £8 but they still refused.  I told the magistrate that they denied me my legal right to pay my debts and then they have the audacity to try to impose costs.  The council tax representative told the court that when someone like me offers to pay they always accept money thus making me look like a liar.  I simply reminded him that the telephone conversations I had with the council tax people offering to pay them are all recorded so there is absolute proof that what I say is true.

I also informed the magistrate that the practice of charging £97 just for the cost of a court summons letter is a deliberate plot on the part of the Government to steal my money.

I also gave the magistrate personal details explaining why I got behind with my council tax in the first place.

The magistrate said that in the circumstances costs will not be awarded and I only have to pay the original bill.  The magistrate ordered that I pay it at the rate of £5 per week which I wanted to do in the first place.

Moral of the story, you can actually beat these thieving robbing b.astards when you are in the right.

Answer 9

She needs some legal help asap. I don;t know the ins and outs, but have had trouble with council tax in the past. Suggest she contacts the CAB for advice immediately.  

Answer 10

Did she actually ever agree this payment schedule with the Council?  Tell her to get on the phone to them and explain her circumstances - they prefer late payment on a date they know than to take her to Court, believe me!