Well, let's not lose sight of the fact that they have not previously been into your home. That being the case, they have no right of entry. No right of entry = they can't remove your goods. Don't worry about boring us with the details, the devil is in the details Yes, as long as they don't get into your house, and are unable to levy any goods outside of your house, then yes you are heading in the right direction. I can't foretell the future any better than anyone else, but I suspect that after a while the bailiffs will hand the account back to the council. It may take longer, it may happen sooner; no one can tell -- but it will happen in the end.

If all else fails you could make a Subject Access Request, pay the fee, and wait 40 days. They'll know exactly what you want it for so I imagine they'll make you wait the whole 40 days. They should have provided that information within 14 days, that would have been reasonable. So in your position I would write again, only this time send a copy to the council tax department, the head of revenues, your councillor and your MP. Don't be afraid to ask for help from these people, this isn't a quick skirmish, it's a long campaign...

Well done Mum!, great to hear common sense has won in the end!

No I don't think they are entitled to charge at all. They aren't allowed to charge for VAT and credit cards, that's because there has been case law about it, which basically says that these are normal business expenses that they are not entitled to pass on to the debtor. Debit cards would be exactly the same, it's just that I don't think a judge has come out and said it yet. Like most good gamblers they play the odds, successfully, assuming that most people will just pay up if they bluff them that the charges are lawful.

Thank you sir. I'm a retired husband to a soap addict...........what else am I going to do? I already know far too much about Neighbours, Home and Away, Emmerdale, Holby City, Coronation Street, Eastenders. This is where I escape to sorry pregnant, that was offtopic, hope you aren't a telly addict as well !

Oh dear, they really did work for the bailiffs. Although that doesn't explain their strange behaviour, something still isn't right in my view.

I second that...

Hey listen, they are not Camelot. They aren't trying to serve something on you for YOUR benefit. Having had stuff served on me once I can recommend avoiding it if possible. So if anyone calls at your house, pick up some tools and tell em you're Bob the Builder and Ted (or whatever your name is) has gone out. I'm not kidding, I was served on my front door and I almost had a heart attack, actually I thought I was having one. I once had a customer who avoided the Revenue for many years, they kept visiting his shops and thought he just worked in them Whatever you decide to do, good luck.

£24.50 FP, he's only visited once. I know I know I'm being picky.... And it was a better post than mine

Did you sign anything when you made that agreement with the bailiffs? In my opinion you are being conned. Really! You must stop telephoning people, all they'll give you is bad news. Only write, email from now on. Good, good! Nooooooooooooooo! Well lets see, it depends on whether you've signed anything, and whether they have been into your house. If the answer is no to both they are stuffed. No they are doing exactly what the council wants them to do. No, they can only seize the property of the debtor. Although Bailiffs have the right to assume it's your property. I'd park it away from the house anyway, but if they did seize it, they should accept a statutory declaration from you that you don't own it. If it's on HP, you don't own it.

Perhaps I should have pointed out that I do belong to the "don't let em in" brigade. However, there are times when people simply cannot face the stress of this, and if you get the council on your side they will get the bailiffs to accept a reasonable payment arrangement. Not all bailiffs are bad guys, some are just decent people trying to earn a living. Don't think much of yours though....£300 fees, for what! If he didn't come inside the house then that was fraudulent in my view.

Then you fall into the "vulnerable" category and once the bailiffs are made aware of it in writing, a decent bailiff will pull off the account and hand it back to the council. If you can show that that is true (I'm not doubting you) then perhaps the council will consider reinstating your original payment arrangements, although I can't see any reason they should in the regs. You need to do and income & expenditure statement, because the council are perfectly capable of instructing the bailiff to accept payment at any rate they see fit - if they want to. Everyone makes mistakes......did he notice you were pregnant? Of course he would, he's a bailiff, that's his job. Yayy! Well done! That changes everything! Steady, steady, don't get carried away, with a deep desire to pay... Please don't take this the wrong way, but you must stop speaking to people on the phone. Please only write/email, that way you can prove what you said later. Lets see, he knocked on the door, that's £24.50. You didn't let him in......good. He hasn't been in since. Right? Answer is, he can't charge more than £24.50 for the 1st visit that didn't result in a levy. You write to the bailiffs explaining that you fall into the category of "vulnerable" person and they should hand the account back, then send a copy to the council tax dept, your councillor and your MP. Don't miss anyone out. Not if he hasn't been inside your house. Well if it's old and knackered, he won't want to take it, but he'll seize it (levy on it) and charge you for that, and then if you don't pay up he'll take it. Park it well away from your house, preferably outside a friendly neighbours house. Even better, sell it to your Uncle Angus for a fiver, register his interest in it on your insurance, and then the bailiff should leave it alone. But parking it away from the house is definitely the thing to do. That's the reason for the "vulnerable" category - to protect people like yourself. Work out how much you can pay them. Once the right kind of letter starts hitting desks or desktops you may find them all a lot more approachable. Chris.

I think the consensus is that you shouldn't worry That's hard for me, I'm a born worrier!

Well that doesn't explain why they tried to charge me for my son, like I said, I don't like taking chances with the council.

Gizmo may be right, but I don't trust the council, and I don't recommend you do that either. Personally, I'd play it safe; just in case...

Don't forget that unless the bailiffs have already been into your house, they have no right of entry. Send the letter I gave you in the private message, make sure no one can walk in through any open doors, and don't leave any downstairs windows open until this is all sorted out. Make sure any cars you own, are parked well away from your house.

I have sent you a private message, did that before you set up your own thread.

Well just fancy that

You don't say how old you are. As it stands, if you were registered for council tax at your parents address, then unless you have informed the council that you have moved, they may very well be billing your parents for you. You are supposed to tell the council when you leave. Although lots of people don't. That goes back to my last comment, the council may think you're still living with your parents. He he, what a fascinating thought; if you are honest and tell them where you have been for the last six years, there's a jolly good chance someone will come after you for six years council tax! Have you any idea how much that will be? Personally, rather than risk that horrific debt I would tell them that I had been sleeping rough, or bumming my way around the Mediterranean, perhaps backpacking would be more palatable explanation. One of the unfortunate problems with council tax call centres, is that they are trained to ask questions, lots of questions. The purpose of all those questions is to establish who you are, where you are, where you've been, and how can they get hold of you if you fall into arrears. Believe me, they're not for your benefit. If I were in your position I wouldn't actually tell them anything, I would write them a very short letter, brief, abrupt even; telling them your name, address, and the date that you have taken over your new address. Sign it, keep or scan a copy, make sure you keep your payments up to date, and leave it at that. That's what I would do

See your post number 29, where they wrote to you saying that as they hadn't been able to levy upon goods they were handing the account back to the council. It's all a load of bollocks! And they are just trying to wear you down. Yes, if you think CAB can help you will the letter you need to send, why not! Although I hope I'm wrong, you may find you have more knowledge about it than them, but in any event their experience will be valuable and it's nice to have a real human to discuss it with instead of us cybermates.

That's quite normal, doesn't mean it's right, just that it's normal Did he leave a seizure notice or notice of levy? Anyway I hope you dug out your HP agreement, because that and a statutory declaration is quite sufficient to deal with that normally. There you go again, ringing and speaking to bailiffs - you really must do all this in writing/email. This was all very predictable you know, I don't think he ever levied upon your car at all. Then don't do it! Thank god for that, you'd only get deeper into the sh*t. Well of course they have, because they are lying! It comes naturally to many bailiffs, many people if the the truth be told - although not by them! I wouldn't make any plans to pay anybody at this point. NO, NO, NO, you have been lied to, screwed each way, and they've put you into a right flap! You need to stop and take stock. First start your own thread cos you are hijacking Northenguys thread. Then collect every piece of paper you've ever had from them. Then go round the house (you already know this anyway) and make sure they can't get in. Park your car well away from the house, preferably a long long way away, at your mums or your mates or something. Then repeat after me, "I will never talk to the bailiff again" They have not been into your house, so they have no right of entry. They have not been able to seize your car, and they haven't the right because it's on HP. They have no rights whatever. So don't open the door to them. If they knock ignore them, close the blinds so they can't see in, and don't give them any feedback at all. And they will go away. It doesn't matter if they turn up in a Terex, they can't charge you for that. You can pay the council online direct, they won't stop you, although the payment will probably go off this years debt first.

So far so good. I'm not quite sure why you did that, because less than half of that will go off your council tax debt. he can't touch it because it isn't your property, although if he levies upon it you must inform him in writing that it belongs to the HP company. Oh dear, I wish you hadn't done that, they weren't entitled to that information. Utter bollocks! The account has been handed to the bailiffs, and there is no time limit on when they can have all the money in. I've owed close to £10k for almost ten years now, although admittedly it's built up to that over time. Dear God, please don't do that again! Never ever talk to bailiffs on the phone unless you are recording it and gathering information for a complaint.

Well, we warned the mortgage company that once repossession notices went up in the windows, that the **** would be on it like flies on dog sh*t. Last night we were not disappointed, one of the neighbours phoned me and said he'd seen two men and a girl climbing over the back fence. I asked him to phone the police and set off. By the time I got there, the three intruders were trying to leave but the neighbours wouldn't let them leave until I arrived. I questioned each one, asked them their name's and what they were doing there. They gave their names, and said that they were subcontractors for the bailiff company, and were only there, to check for squatters and to change the locks so that no one could get in. Thing is, the bailiffs had already been on the eviction date and I had given them a key, they said they were changing the locks. Then the other day, another bailiff entered the house using a key presumably checking that everything was okay inside the house, a neighbour who thought I still lived there challenged him and was shown identification. The three scruffians began to get aggressiv,e one of them shouting that he didn't have to provide identification, so I said "okay, just go to the door open it with the key and then lock it again, and then we can all go." Just then the police arrived -- and the scruffian's told them that they worked for a bailiff company, were checking for squatters, and had disabled the lock so no one could get in using an original key. They showed the police officer what they said they had done, twirling the ward ring that is in every mortise lock and which I expect almost everyone would have to dial back at some time in their lives. Not a very reliable way to disable a lock is it... The police chose to accept that explanation, although they later admitted that they didn't really believe it themselves. So it's quite clear now that the house is being advertised in the ****** Gazette, you know the criminal grapevine. There is not much point in me going down again, I know that the neighbours are unlikely to phone me again, or the police -- because right now they see the house as being owned by nobody -- and they're not going to put themselves out for a mortgage company who they regard as being somewhere between pondlife and the stuff that lives under stones. I'm a little bit worried about what will happen when it comes to a money judgement. I have seen just how quickly houses can deteriorate once the thieves and vandals get it on their radar. It's a posh area, but still has a couple of derelict houses that are virtually unsaleable. Has anyone got any suggestions about what I can do about this now, or when it comes to the final money judgement hearing?

Dead as a dodo

The Council Tax and Non-Domestic Rating (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2006 see schedule 5, the calculation is there, It doesn't sound right though.