Council tax costs

[ahflibra]

All opinions welcomed

Questions

1. If a council is sending out new bills in March for liability year starting the month after April with item costs placed on it and sum of money for this item costs is the same sum of money a council charges a person/s who has defaulted on payments when they claim to have been awarded a liability Oder from the courts LAWFUL , because how can a person/s already defaulted on payments of a liability year that has not yet started ? And this administration has been going on for 10 plus years

2.And if it is UNLAWFUL when at the end of a liability year a councils books are checked by the external auditor do you think a council has hidden this administration process from the auditor or could the auditor have not picked up on it or is it irrelevant to an auditor how the council collects its council tax

[outlawlgo]

Re: Council tax costs

Is this what is happening?

The council obtains a liability order each year (imposing court costs) because each year costs are carried forward to the subsequent year's account.

Payment is always allocated to the costs first making the current years debt in arrears again which begins recovery all over.

[ahflibra]

Re: Council tax costs

From the FOI I"ve received from the council costs placed on account in March for year starting Month after April if a person defaults in months EG September ,October and November and claim they have a liability order costs are added again and costs are added again a third time when they send out the bill for remaining months of liability year December and January so cost are placed 3 times on a account but they have only one liability order in 2011 my council was charging £74 but if a person had defaulted costs of £222 was paced on account

what they are doing is placing costs on accounts of people who do not pay DD then remove it if questioned

my council has has allowed people who pay DD to spread costs over 12 months which councils have to offer now for about 5 years

For years each March I received my bill and just excepted it to be correct questioned it they have now removed it but won't tell me why put in a SAR my account came back it was on from 2004 till 2011 until 2004 I"d always paid DD for 17 years but change when I was made redundant in 2003

I obtained External Auditors contact details from Audit Office told him what the council had been doing on my and asked him could he check my account he came back in May this year saying I can only talk about this years payments and they are correct but seek advice on other years .... But I knew my account for 2012/2013 was because I questioned the council but they won't why for the years from 2004 to 2011 costs were placed on in March for year starting month after

hope that makes sence , but what I can't get my head around it the role of the external auditor in all this

[outlawlgo]

Re: Council tax costs

I don't understand how the council is applying the court costs in this case, but I understand some local authorities waive costs if the taxpayer enters into a special arrangement and/or agrees to pay by Direct Debit.

It may be that in circumstances where the agreement is broken or Direct Debit cancelled the costs will then be re-applied. However, adding multiple court costs the way you describe sounds very suspect and would be interested to see the council's response to the FoI request you mention.

[ahflibra]

Re: Council tax costs

Hi thanks

I also thinks its suspect but it's getting them to admit , but like all councils FOI is a long process with them they take the full allocated time to reply with only half of your requests answered , will have to give it some more thought

Outlawlgo
Do you have any ideas on the external auditor roll in this ? Thanks again

[outlawlgo]

Re: Council tax costs

In my opinion it should not by necessary to twist the arm of the external auditor to investigate these matters, it should be part of its remit. I believe private companies are contracted to do local authorities' audits; if in this area the audit commission was slack when it was its responsibility, I should think the situation would be ten times worse now private companies are involved.

When you consider who pays the hundreds of thousands of pounds fee each year to the audit company, you have to ask whose interests they're likely to be looking after.

In my mind, if the council is defrauding taxpayers, it should be for the police to investigate but you won't get anything other than "it's a Civil matter", or that it should be taken up with the Local Government Ombudsman. Of course if you inform the LGO they'll say its a matter for the police.

[ahflibra]

Re: Council tax costs

Your absolutely right , when I contacted the audit office they said report it to the police Which I did they said would get back and I received a phone call from my community support officer yet the council tax payers are paying for their own police

Accepted this is going to be a long process to get the answers I want , so I will call it my new hobby

Another question , the auditor himself paid a personal visit to a meeting of the councillors audit committe in August , and going through the councils website they publish info of all the councillors meetings and that has never occurred he usually sends his two female staff and they have been the same staff for the last 7 years and practically on a weekly basis the council are putting info on its web page of all new changes to the council tax system etc etc

do you think I am reading to much into this ?

[outlawlgo]

Re: Council tax costs

They say you shouldn't bite the hand that feeds you. The police must view that to be the hand of the local authority which is unfortunate seeing as though it's the council taxpayer who ultimately pays their wages.

I don't know if you're reading too much into it but I would guess the firm contracted to audit the council's accounts would want to do as little work as possible for its taxpayer funded money.

[ahflibra]

Re: Council tax costs

I received a letter from my local court today ,responding to my questions on costs and the response was

Basically saying the Magistrates agree costs after a liability has been awarded , so that agreement will be the costs the council put on the summons letter sent out to defaulters to attend court , and the other issues I raised must be take up directly with the council

But that's my point I have but they won't answer me just stopped placing it onto my bill in March