Old Council Tax debt

[South Yorks]

Hello

 

i need help......

 

..... when i split with my ex husband in 2002 there was a council tax debt of £559.60

- i offered to pay and was told as the account was in his name first i didnt need to pay it off and i opened a new account for the place i was living.

 

A couple of years later i received a letter asking if i knew where he was living

- i gave his parents address and told the council he had moved to Botswana and then to Leeds and as far as i knew he was still living in Leeds

- the council telephoned me asking if i could confirm he was living in Leeds as the only person listed had stated he moved there from Botswana.

 

A couple of years later i received a chasing letter taking me to court

- the council lady i spoke to informed me i would be better off going to court

which i did and the court appointed solicitor argued for me and the judgment was i was not responsible and they were to chase him again.

 

today i have received a letter;

 

Council tax arrears re XXXXXXXXXXX (address of where i lived with ex)

 

i refer to previous correspondence (not had anything since the court) regarding the above and would inform you that a balance of £559.60

remains outstanding for the period 01/04/01 to 27/09/02 when you were jointly liable for council tax with Mr XXXXX

 

i would also inform you that government regulations require that where there is an outstanding amount of council tax

resulting from a joint tenant or partner vacating a property, each joint tenant or joint partner has an equal responsibility for payment.

 

i should therefor be obliged if you would contact recoveries of the resovery section immediately to make suitable arrangements to clear the outstanding balance.

 

if arrangements have not been made within the next 7 days further recovery action will be taken to collect the outstanding balance.

 

I hace called them and tried to explain the situation to be informed there is nothing on the account stating the court decision

and i am worried.

 

i dont have the money and have a small child to look after so money is very tight ......

 

......any advice would be appreicated.

 

Thanks

[dx100uk]

when was this court appearance?

 

dx

[South Yorks]

it was a long time ago i would say 2004-05 i dont have any documentation as i thought it was all done with. i forgot to mention when i divorced my first husband i also got a clean break order

[cerberusalert]

Was a Liability Order actually awarded against you?

 

If not, because six years have passed the Council will not be able to apply for one now because of the Limitations Act.

[South Yorks]

i didnt receive anything from the council i was told to forget it they would be chasing ex husband. is there a letter i can send in as they have asked me to send them something explaining why i am not liable?

[cerberusalert]

It's unusual that they never obtained a LO against both of you, although not impossible.

 

Send them this and see what they produce; http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/content.php?428-General-debt-letter-if-you-know-nothing-of-the-debt

 

Alternatively you can just tell them it's Statute Barred & unless they can produce a Liablity Order from that period you will not enter into any further communication with them.

[South Yorks]

if there is a liability order does that mean i will have to pay it even after all this time?

[cerberusalert]

Unlike a normal debt a court judgment never becomes Statute Barred although in certain circumstances the right to actually enforce does.

 

For the moment you need to determine whether there is in fact a LO in place and the only way that can happen is if they produce a copy as unlike a CCJ a CO is not recorded on your credit file or on the Trust site.

 

Who is actually demanding payment, the council or a debt collection company?

[South Yorks]

The council are chasing giving me 7 days to make arrangements to pay or further recovery action will be taken to collect the outstanding balance.

[dx100uk]

you'll have to phone the council and ask

 

dx

[cerberusalert]

Tell them it's SB & see what they come up with.

 

If they didn't obtain the CO originally they cannot do so now as it's time barred.

[South Yorks]

is there a standard letter?

[cerberusalert]

The letters we have in our library are focused on consumer debt & don't really apply in these circumstances.

 

Just tell them the alleged debt they are referring to is 10 years old and therefore Statute Barred & see what they answer with.

 

If they do have a CO they should include a copy in their response, if they don't you can ask for one.

[South Yorks]

i have amended the letter template sent earlier and asked if the debt is statute barred due to the length of time. i will see what they respond with tomorrow. Thanks for your help so far

[South Yorks]

Hello

 

Many Thanks for your help i have had a reply via email where they are informing me they have no address for my ex husband and will not be pursuing me for the amount.

[cerberusalert]

Well done. Keep a copy of that email in case something nasty crawls from under a rock in the future.

[South Yorks]

Yes i know i will be keeping copies in at least 4 different places just in case.