Birstow and Sutor CTAX LO fees

[tattoo196524]

Hi,

i received a letter dated 30/10/20 for a missed  council tax payment dated 5/2/17 from Birstow and Sutor.

 

This is the only time i have been made aware of the debt,It seems this was my last months bill before i moved house.

I contacted the council to pay but they refereed me to the above.

 

I contacted Birstows to offer a payment plan but they would not negotiate with me.

 

They are also adding a fee of £235 even though no bailiff has visited.

 

thank you

 

Peter

 

 

 

 

B+S NOE.pdf

[dx100uk]

Has the NOE your current and correct address on it?

 

dx

 

[tattoo196524]

Yes

[dx100uk]

then as far as i am aware your assumption that the £235 fee is bogus is correct

nothing unusual for Busted & Stupid to try it on mind.

 

send B&S this

 

"From:
My Name
My Address
.
To:
Acme Bailiff Co
Bailiff House
.
Ref: Account No: 123456
.
Dear Sir
.
With reference to the above account, Can you please provide me with a breakdown of the charges. 
.
This includes:
a - the time & date of any Bailiff action that incurred a Fee.
b - the reason for the fee.
c - the name(s) of the Bailiff(s) that attended on each occasion a Fee was charged.
d - the name(s) of the Court(s) the Bailiff(s) was/were certificated .
e - the date of the Certification.
.
This is not a Subject access request under the Data Protection Act S7 1998 so does not incur a fee of £10. You are obliged to provide this information.
.
I require this information within 14 days.
.
Yours faithfully
.
Ripped off customer"

 

 

 

 

[Peterbard]

Hi

You need to get on to the authority also, there are various statutory letters you should have received from them prior to any further enforcement(bailiffs). You should have been warned for instance that the a liability order was being applied for.

 

I take it you had moved out by the time the liability order was issued in 2017?

 

With respect to DX, that letter is way out of date, and really should not be used.

 

If you have proof you moved before the liability order was made, like your new CT bill. Offer to send a copy.

 

Ask them to withdraw the bailiffs, as you want to set up a repayment plan

I find it helps to offer a payment off the debt, perhaps the first instalment, others disagree but I think it shows willing. 

You may have to provide them with an I and E.

 

I dont see mention of an enforcement fee, but these can only be charged after the bailiff has called. Once the order is taken back, any bailiff fee should be removed.

 

You will have to be persistent.

 

 

Edited November 17, 2020 by Peterbard

[tattoo196524]

Hi Peterbard,

the letter from Bristow was the first time i was informed of the debt.

I left the property on the 23/4/17 some three months before the date of the liability order.

The only proof would be that i ended the tenancy in the April.

 

No mention of the enforcement fee but in the sum outstanding but they put the total sum outstanding as £441.23 when only £206.23 is showing leaving an extra £235.00 that has been added which i assumed was an enforcement fee

 

Have just been on web chat with Birstow and they have agreed the extra £235 was an enforcement fee for a bailiff they sent to an old address in February 2020

[dx100uk]

They cant charge that then

The org noe was thus invalid and the bailiff should have taken due diligence in finding you.

 

Which he has now done.

Trying to pull a fast one !!

 

I cant see why you cant pay the council directly the 131.23 + 75 now

 

What do you think PB? 

 

[Peterbard]

They could not have visited earlier(legally) without sending an earlier NOE, like the one produced here.

 

Ask them for a copy of the earlier notice, and details of when it was sent.

As it is, you are now at compliance stage, and only the compliance fee of £75 is due.

 

You need to write/email to the authority and tell them that you had no idea the liability order had been applied for, or that indeed money was owed, as you had left the area. Copy the Bailiff in.

 

If the authority take it back, which they should IMO, they should cancel all enforcement fees.

 

Hi DX, At first thought you would think so: but if you did that, the bailiff would still have the enforcement power. 

 

It hasn't been withdrawn and there is nothing to stop him calling and charging the extra fee, especially because the debtor is told to pay him, and not the authority.

 

I dare say, eventually it would be all sorted and he would get his money back, but there are no guarantees .

 

Best going about it the right way IMO and getting the LO sorted. He should have ample time.

 

 

[dx100uk]

i wonder what happened..