Council Tax - do they have a legal right to insist on payment in 10 not 12 months?

[markmark13]

Sorry if this is in the wrong place - couldn't find a Council Tax forum

 

 

So far this year, I have paid my Council Tax as follows

April - paid 15th May

May - paid 15th June

June - paid 13th July

 

I'm sure you can guess where this is going!

 

I've had 2 reminders and after the 2nd one I rang and told them that I can't afford to make up the arrears so will always be one month behind. But that still means that I'll have paid in full for services up to the end of March by the middle of February. Their only argument seemed to be that the computer didn't like it, and so I'd continue to get letters and eventually a summons. I said send what you want, but that's how I'm going to pay you.

 

So now I've had the pink Final Notice which says I've got to pay in full or I'll get a summons and £64 charges added on.

 

I think I'm going to send it back and tell them that if I get a summons then I'll actually turn up at court (I did it to DVLA once - they were stunned and didn't know what to do!) and say to the judge

(a) look at my payment record - why the hell are we here?

(b) what gives them the right to insist that I pay for 12 months of services in 10 months

 

Just want to check first, though, if there is actually any legal right for them on that second point.

 

Thanks

[sillygirl1]

I was told it's in the legal bits of the Council Tax that the bill is due 'immediately' and you have to pay 'in full and up front' wherever possible... whether or not you can afford it - and whether or not your personal circumstances change over the year (mine changed dramatically but they didn't care... just wanted their money). If I can find the letter I got from my then local council I will cut and paste the relevant bits here.

[maxitrol]

same happend to me we missed 2 payments and now they want it all in full told them we couldn't meet the payments but we still ave to pay the full amount just to empty our bins

[Guest ArthurP]

(b) what gives them the right to insist that I pay for 12 months of services in 10 months

 

Just want to check first, though, if there is actually any legal right for them on that second point.

 

Thanks

 

The Government decide the instalment period of Council Tax just like a TV Licence where you can be paying for a new one six months before your old one expires! Bizarre but there we go.

 

Although it is up to your Council if they are willing to allow you special arrangements.

 

My council gives a small rebate if you pay up in one go. Not all do that.

[IdaInFife]

I pay mine currently in 12 months and not ten. also in the past when I couldn't afford 1 month they split it over the the remainder of the years.

 

Idax

[The Phantom]

It must vary from Council to Council.

We used to pay via standing order over 10 months, but when my OH went bankrupt and the bank froze the account we effectively missed one payment.

We never heard anything and just made one extra payment at the end of the period and it was all no problem, so it must be that different councils handle it in their own way.

But I do agree, why should we pay for 12 months service in 10 months ?

But the same goes for water. We use an installment booklet which spans over 12 months, but if we were to change to direct debit we would have to pay over 10 months. A joke really:mad:

[pt2537]

hi,

i do remember a person being taken to court for paying in 12 instalments not the ten which the council wanted.the council lost the case and the person, i think it was an elderly gentleman was given the right by the court to pay over 12 months. im not sure if this case was reported, i will have a look on the legal databases such as westlaw,lexis nexis and lawtel to see if i can find anything

 

regards

 

paul

[Guest Fallenangel]

Hi, we had a choice of payments either 10 or 12 months, we chose 12 by direct debit.. either 1st or 25th of month etc.....and we missed one payment and they collected 2 the next month, no hassle.......

[powelll]

In theory a council tax bill is payable as soon as it's issued. Payment required within 14 days of the due date.

 

If you have chosen to pay by instalments and you are 14 days late with any payment you should get a reminder. This reminder must give you at least 7 days to pay the missed instalment.

 

At this stage, if the amount due isn't paid the statutory right to pay by instalments is lost and in theory the full amount is then due. In practice most council will continue to accept instalments but some will be much more aggressive than others ( I have come across ones who have petitioned for bkrptcy... )

 

Hope this helps as an overview

[The Phantom]

That's what is printed on the back of the bill, but we have missed a payment once and never got a reminder (pls see my post above)

We just (on our own account) made an extra payment at the end and never heard a single word, so it must vary from council to council