Who grants a liability order for Council Tax?

[ninjamo]

Hi,

 

Who grants a liability order for Council Tax? Is it a magistrates court? and if so, shouldn't I know about it? Can they grant a liability order if I have offered to pay but put it off for a couple of months due to losing a job? (which they have known about and agreed to)

 

sorry guys this is such a minefield!!!

[Oh Boy!]

The council applies to the local Magistrates for a liability order, you should of been given a chance to attend court and fill in a Means Enquiry form, but obviously you have not for whatever reason.

 

Now what will happen is a bailiff will come round to your house, and add stupid amounts of money something like 10 guzillion Ugandan Dollars, just for telling you that you owe money.

 

When it gets to that stage, come back and search the sites for lots of advice, i have posted many times on what to do next.

[ninjamo]

right thanks for that, have been onto the council who are adamant they sent me one but I know I never received it. all i got was a council letter headed letter informing me what i owed and to contact them to pay it. i duly contacted them and arranged a £30 per month payment plan which of course i defaulted on (although let them know) and the next thing i know i get the bailiff posted letter telling me they're due to collect on a liability order. the council have just told me that to set up a payment plan with them i will have def got a liability order first, is this true?

[Oh Boy!]

Whatever the reason for you not receiving the LO you have now got one against you.

 

The bailiff will rely on it to make you pay up. He will want you to sign a walk in possession, do not let him in, and talk to him from behind locked door.

 

 

firstly as i normally advise all people, Ignore Bailiff and send your payments direct to the Council, they have to credit your account with the amounts you pay, you saw the email to bailiff, send letter to Council offering 5 months don't wait for a yes or no answer, with the letter send your first 100.00 quid, and stick to it you do not need to pay the bailiff direct, he is after all a "debt collector" with the ability to seize goods.

 

You CAN NOT be arrested if you are paying, the arrest is only for people who can but won't pay so you are in no danger there.

 

By asking you to sign a walking possession, he is trying to tie you up, so if you screw up then your going to face a lot more difficulties.

 

By also getting you to sign the WP, he seems to appear to be doing his work, for his companies benefit of course.

 

Remember he needs to visit the debtor within 7 days of the warrant being issued, however i do not think that this is relevant in your case.

__________________

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[tomtubby]

Sorry oh Boy but can I correct you.....no shouting please everyone.!!

 

As a business, we spend all day dealing ONLY with bailiff problems referred to us by either our website or from police forces and advice bureau's around the country. (We have even had referrals from the Office of Fair Trading!!!)

 

By far the main complaints that we receive about bailiffs concern the threats and intimidation and their excessive fees and charges.

 

Putting aside for one moment the above, we have to constantly talk to councils and bailiffs also as the debtor has paid his council tax to bailiff's INSTEAD of paying the bailiff company.

 

Once a Council has been granted a Liability Order, this then enables the council to PASS the debt to a bailiff to enforce. The bailiff is then entitled to charge his fees ON TOP of the debt owed. If however you then decide to pay the council direct......many councils then credit the payment TO THE CURRENT YEAR'S ACCOUNT. There is nothing to stop them doing this.....and we have seen this happens SO MANY TIMES. Therefore if you, or anyone else for that matter recommonds paying the council online INSTEAD of the bailiffs you should insist that they first get the agreement of the council to do this or at least to get a receipt that shows clearly that the payment has been correctly credited to the right year.

 

A way to avoid this is to send the payment instead to the bailiff company with a letter to say that you are enclosing the payment in Full & Final Settlement of the Liability Order and their fees and include with the payment either an amount of £24.50 plus vat for a first visit or an additional amount of £18.00 plus vat if they have visited twice.

 

Enclose with your payment a letter to say why you are paying the sum enclosed and copy it to the council.

[ninjamo]

thanks for your replies, luckily it hasnt got to the point where i've had a visit or anything like that (i have only just received a posted through royal mail letter from them 2 days ago). My main problem is I had an agreement with the council, missed 2 payments which I let them know about, and they agreed i could get the account up to speed by 01/11/07 and nothing further would happen. obviously this was a load of crap coming from some trainee or something that didn't know what they were on about as they have in the mean time issued the liability order. my main gripe is that I knew nothing about the liability order as would have obviously attended court etc if I had known. The council say that by their records, notice of the LO was sent out on the 22/09/07. I didnt receive this. Aren't there rules that it has to be recorded delivery??

I actually contacted equita and arranged to pay £50 per month with them which is fine other than the fact that I can't seem to get through via phone to pay them as requested and they have added on a charge of £42.50 for posting me a (first and only) letter, I have read that this charge is unlawful so is there any way i can get them to take this off and start off the £50 per month payments, and is there any possible way of getting the liability order revoked as i knew nothing about it, or at least make a complaint to the council?

[PizzaMaker]

Now what will happen is a bailiff will come round to your house, and add stupid amounts of money something like 10 guzillion Ugandan Dollars, just for telling you that you owe money.

 

 

Does that equate at the Ugandan exchane rate of £24.50?

[Downinthedumps]

Hi,

There are no rules that it has to be by recorded delivery, all the council would have to do is provide a copy of what was posted.

 

Although you did not know about the liability order hearing, it wouldnt really have mattered if you did because a liability order hearing is only to confirm you are liable for the debt....which you know you are. You would not be able to contest liability because you are the Council Tax payer for your address.

 

What I would say though is that if you are not working, are you on Jobseekers or Income Support? If so, the court costs should be reduced and the bailiff warrant should be returned to the council.

 

I used to work in a Council tax department so know the proper procedures that should happen.

 

Feel free to ask any questions.

[casbah]

how about this for a humdinger!!!!

Got a letter from my council today stating that a hearing is due later this month for my commital to prison, for outstanding council tax yr 06/07. The outstanding balance is £465.29 I have paid the bailiffs £550.00 and contacted the council in july to say that i would not be dealing with the bailiffs anymore and would only deal with the council. The council say that they have not received any payment from the bailliff but the bailiff say they have paid the council. I told the council to contact the bailiff but they refuse and still claim I have this outstanding balance, I can prove I have paid the bailiff and have done so to the council but still they pursue this. It has been my experience in the past, that the bailiffs haven't credited the correct account, and after I spat my dummy out, they sorted it ( blamed it on the new girl in the accounts dept). I have

noticed that the bailiffs are charging me alot more in fees than you all state on here. I am so annoyed at the council that I will go to the top this time. I have told them I will attend the meeting at the end of the month with the local press, why is it down to me to prove the payments have been made when the bailiffs tell me they have and the council won't ring them direct.

[Downinthedumps]

Hi Cas,

 

Bailiffs tend to take payment for their fees before they pay councils any money owed so you may want to check what the total bailiff costs are as you may find that this is why the council have not received any money yet.

 

If you are going to attend the committal hearing, make sure you have tallied all the costs etc.

 

Hope this helps

[casbah]

yea it does thanks

[Hereabc]

Ninjamo, I sympathise with you. I had a LO against me without my knowledge (because they wrote to a different address) even though I told them of that I was no longer living there.