We Won!!! 11 year fight over council tax is over!!

[Steveyo]

We have just received a decision from a Valuation Tribunal in respect of alleged unpaid council tax. (The council basically wanted us to pay unpaid council tax for up to 4 years after we moved out of a rented flat, simply because the landlord/owner never paid afetr we moved out)
Finally, after a long fight the decision is in!
The council were in the wrong- we don't have to pay them a damn penny!
They had taken out Liability Orders against us by giving incorrect/false information to the court!

As our appeal has been upheld, all we have to decide now is whether to sue edited or not for all of the stress, inconvenience, cost and worry about bailiffs has cost us over the last 18 months.

All I can say is this.
If you really owe the council tax people money and they have a Liability Order, pay up!
If they are in the wrong, fight them tooth and nail all of the way!!!
It takes a hell of a long time, but if you are in the right, you will eventually win!

[MARTIN3030]

Welcome to the site.Since theres not much background maybe you could give a full account here-Its a good victory and one which will interest others.Theres been some bad examples of treatment in these forums and quite often the man in the street has a very big fight.
Will move your post into the Council tax forums where hopefully you can add more.
I have edited a little here as you can see-While I can understand your feelings at the result-theres site rules to consider.

[Steveyo]

Originally Posted by MARTIN3030

Will move your post into the Council tax forums where hopefully you can add more.
I have edited a little here as you can see-While I can understand your feelings at the result-theres site rules to consider.

That's okay, I understand your reasons for editing, sub-judice and all of that...we have been so excited about winning this I have quite forgotten myself.
I'd be happy to go into detail, but basically, we lived in a rented flat in 1997 for ten months- had to move out.
We notified the council tax people when we moved and gave them our new address. (which is a matter of their own record)
For some reason , because the council tax was unpaid by the following tenant and/or landlord, they took out Liability Orders against us for the years 1997, 1998, 1999 and 2000.
The idiots kept sending council tax demands to the flat we had moved out of, and had no access to- instead of contacting is at our new address.
We didn't return to the flat or arrange to have our mail redirected because we were in dispute with the landlord, and had no iodea about the problem.
The first we heard of the Liability Orders was 18 months ago when the bailiffs came knocking at the door!

Anyway, it's all over now.

All I really wanted to say is that if you are fighting the council over a matter like this, and you really are in the right- don't ever give up.
The council people are a slow moving- slow witted bunch, and you need to keep banging their heads on the table until they eventually realize the full situation.
It's difficult- but it can be done.
It doesn't matter how many phone calls or letters it takes- just do it.
Good luck to all of you.

[sidvicious]

well done Steveyo a galant victory.i agree with your discription of the council too!!.

[Conniff]

This is a wonderful post. To get justice agains lying and cheating councils, (and that is every council), must be on a par with winning the lottery.

Congratulations Steve. Perhaps you could put a big sign in your front garden saying xx council tried to rip me off but I beat them.

[389shell]

Originally Posted by Conniff

This is a wonderful post. To get justice agains lying and cheating councils, (and that is every council), must be on a par with winning the lottery.

Congratulations Steve. Perhaps you could put a big sign in your front garden saying xx council tried to rip me off but I beat them.

LOL

Well done Steve!

[389shell]

They would probably do him for not having planning permission

[BRBOY]

Well done Steve. I'm glad for you.

I don't agree that all Council's and their staff are slow moving and dim-witted, but your Council has shown gross incompetence and part of the reason for that is that Council staff do not need any legal qualifications or a legal background to prosecute in a Magistrates court, and if they had done their homework properly, they woud have relised that it was illegal to obtain the liabillity order against you.

My only query is why, after years of sending your mail to the incorrect address, they had the presence of mind to send the bailiffs to the correct address?? If they had your correct address on file as you say, they only had to do a land registry search to establish ownership of the flat - after all, you can't be living in 2 places at once.

BB