Council Tax + bailiff Fees + Council Application For Custodial Sentence

[calvi36]

Hi All,

 

I took the advice given on the site regarding how to deal with bailiffs and council tax arrears.

 

I did not allow them into my home.

I did not sign anything.

I dealt only in writing with the bailiff company.

 

Now the bailiff company have passed it back to the council stating that they could not recover any monies from me. The council have now sent me a letter stating that they will be making an application to the magistrates court seeking a custodial sentence for non payment.

 

The arrears are £200, the council have demaded this years CT in full £1100 and there is a remaining £318 for bailiff fees. Can the council demand payment of the bailiff fees which I am disputing anyway?

[hallowitch]

i would make an official complaint to the council and say that at no time did you refuse to pay the council tax you refused to pay the bailiffs fee as you know the are wrong as the most they can be is £42.50 if the bailiff has visited you twice

as for this years council tax if there are no arrears on it i don't see how they get a liability order but im not sure about this

 

 

IMPORTANT...If you need to make a Complaint to the Local Authority then read here.....

It must be remembered that a bailiff enforcing a debt for council tax, National Non Domestic Rates (NNDR) or an unpaid parking ticket is working as a agent for the local authority.

 

In this, the local authority cannot simply abdicate responsibility for the actions of their contractor as ultimately, it is the responsibility of the local authority to ensure that a levy is carried out in a lawful manner and that the fees charged by their agents are in accordance with statutory regulations.

 

Following a discussion with the Local Government Ombudsman's Office (LGO) they have advised that if you have a Compliant for the Council about their bailiff's then you MUST do the following:

 

.

 

You must ENSURE that you mark your letter to the local authority: FORMAL COMPLAINT.

 

Your letter should be addressed to the CHIEF EXECUTIVE and should be COPIED to the COMPLAINTS DEPARTMENT ( this will ensure that it is registered as a formal complaint).

 

If you are unsatisfied with your response from the local authority then you can take your complaint to the Local Government Ombudsman but they will want to see that you have gone through the councils COMPLAINTS PROCEDURE first and that you have allowed the local authority a maximum period of 12 weeks to respond.

 

The Local Government Ombudsman's office will need to satisy themselves that you have made it CLEAR to the Local Authority that you are making a FORMAL COMPLAINT.

[calvi36]

Thanks for that Hallowitch. You will not believe this! Spoke to the council, they have done a credit search on me without my permission!

[ambershadow]

That's not allowed...

[kiptower]

actually Councils can do credit searches , been right through the complaints on this and the LGO confirmed that they are allowed , however it shows as a non recorded entry , but one else can see the search's.

 

the normal reasons for search are

 

rent /CT arrears,

 

any type of council fraud investigation,

[calvi36]

Hmmmm, I am actually a data controller and hold data protection registration. I have never heard of any organisation being allowed to perform searches without the express permission of the person concerned.

[kiptower]

Councils were granted a lot of powers in regards of Fraud investigation , which they do abuse, you would be surprised just what they can access , bank records - emails just to name 2, there has been a recent call by MP's to check on just what councils are doing with these power in the last 2 days

 

here

 

Ministers to review councils' use of anti-terrorism surveillance powers | UK news | The Guardian

 

examples

 

Last month it emerged the surveillance powers had been used by 182 district and unitary councils 10,288 times since 2004, but fewer than one in 10 inquiries led to a successful prosecution, caution, or fixed penalty notice.

The alleged offences included dog fouling, littering, illegal street trading, taxi overcharging and taking the fairy lights from a Christmas tree.

[FairPlay77]

actually Councils can do credit searches , been right through the complaints on this and the LGO confirmed that they are allowed , however it shows as a non recorded entry , but one else can see the search's.

 

What do you mean by 'a non-recorded entry'? Does that mean that, on your record, it shows that someone has been snooping but their identity is not revealed?

[dx100uk]

no otherway around.

 

they can search but it should not affect your rating.

 

dx

[calvi36]

I have just spoken with the information commissioners office regarding the search of my credit file by the local council. Their response, "It is extremely and highly unusual for a local authority to search any residents credit file. The only way this should be done is if the authority is investigating a fraud". They have asked for me to make a formal complaint.