Looking for advice please, expat living in US, parents getting harassed

[georgiabrit]

Hi, I moved to the U.S back in November 2010. before that, I had rented a house for about 6 months following a divorce and sale of my old home. On the day I moved into my rental home (in about June 2010) I called the countil tax office, explained i had been receiving council tax benefit at my old place, but this being a new borough council, I knew i should call and start the process again. They told me they would mail me some forms to complete to apply for council tax benefit. I received them, filled them in, sent them off. Never heard a single thing back. Never received a bill, a letter, anything. I moved out of the rental place in early November 2010, and later that month moved finally to the USA, where I live now, hold a Green Card and will become a citizen soon.
In the middle of 2011, the council started sending demand letters to my parents address in the same town (I have no idea how they got their address) addressed to me. I called them to find out why, and they claimed I owed 6 months council tax. I explained what had happened, and that i was no longer resident in the UK, had no funds or assets there, and had never received a council tax bill all the time i had been renting, in fact i had assumed they had approved my claim for benefit, so this truly was the first I had heard of any outstanding "debt". The rude lady told me I was wrong, had obviously skipped my payments, and they would be obtaining a Liability order from the local court. I looked this up, and I asked her if that was even obtainable against someone no longer resident in the UK. I also asked for a copy of this court order. She refused to provide one.
Late that year they sent bailiffs to my parents house, however my father is a licenced Insolvency Practitioner, used to dealing with these people. He sent them packing, and we never heard a thing after that.

Fast forward to today... my parents again have received a letter saying that, following the Liability Order, if I dont pay a bill of over 600 pounds within 14 days, they will apply to the court for a Commital Order and get a warrant for my arrest! Now my mother is freaking out, thinking i'm going to be arrested the next time i land at Heathrow for a visit >.< I phoned the council and they said my rental agency told them i moved in in November 2010?!? I replied that I had emigrated by then! They had no record of my applying for any benefit. I asked her how someone could have mailed me paperwork, and she implied I was lying; I asked her where my bills were for the six months owed, and she said it was down to me to pay whether or not i'd ever been billed.

Can anyone give any advice or shed some light on these court orders... shouldnt they have to issue me with documents or something? Can they really arrest me if I ever come back to the UK?

Basically... help?!?

Thanks so much, this forum is wonderful!

GB

[ploddertom]

Re: Looking for advice please, expat living in US, parents getting harassed

Do you have anything with a date on of when you moved into your present property? The Council are going to look pretty stupid asking to arrest a non-resident.

[bluebottle]

Re: Looking for advice please, expat living in US, parents getting harassed

Which council and bailiff company is involved, please? As for your father sending the bailiffs packing.... :hail::hail::hail::hail:

[georgiabrit]

Re: Looking for advice please, expat living in US, parents getting harassed

ah ok, update from my parents - they called and spoke to the council, because i've got the flu and lost my voice and wasnt making much headway. So the dates they now have are correct, Jun to November 2010. This doesnt excuse how I never got a single bill or notification though This is Stevenage Borough Council, and the debt has been handed back to them from the bailiffs, not sure who they were now. It is the council who say they will apply for this Commital thing. Can they do that, for someone who lives abroad? And even though they never replied to my paperwork or sent me a bill during june-nov 2010??

[ploddertom]

Re: Looking for advice please, expat living in US, parents getting harassed

The accont will have been handed back to the Council by the Bailiffs, They will have either described the case as outright refusal or unable to enforce but no reason given. The next stage is a Committal Order where you are summonsed to appear - non-appearance could be cause for Contempt and an Arrest Warrant issued + the costs of any applications are added to the debt. I assume if this does come your father will swear a Stat Dec declaring you not to be resident and living abroad.

[CleverClogs]

Re: Looking for advice please, expat living in US, parents getting harassed

This is Stevenage Borough Council, and the debt has been handed back to them from the bailiffs, not sure who they were now. It is the council who say they will apply for this Committal thing. Can they do that, for someone who lives abroad?

Without trying extradition proceedings - which would surely be laughed out of court - or declaring war on America, they will have difficulty.

Your father should ask his local councillor(s) why the numpties who are supposed to collect Council Tax

1. seem to have gross delusions of adequacy and
2. seem determined to squander tax payers' money on proceedings that will get nowhere

As a safeguard, though, it might be an idea to claim political asylum as a member of the Woolenwick Liberation Front. msl:

[wales01man]

Re: Looking for advice please, expat living in US, parents getting harassed

Can the bailiff claim overtime and airfares to go to the states to levy a car?

[bluebottle]

Re: Looking for advice please, expat living in US, parents getting harassed

Can the bailiff claim overtime and airfares to go to the states to levy a car?

I think a court would accuse them of taking the p*ss.

[bluebottle]

Re: Looking for advice please, expat living in US, parents getting harassed

The accont will have been handed back to the Council by the Bailiffs, They will have either described the case as outright refusal or unable to enforce but no reason given. The next stage is a Committal Order where you are summonsed to appear - non-appearance could be cause for Contempt and an Arrest Warrant issued + the costs of any applications are added to the debt. I assume if this does come your father will swear a Stat Dec declaring you not to be resident and living abroad.

If an application goes before a bench of JPs, supposed "pillars of the community", more accurately, "pillocks of the community", the council might just get away with it. If, on the other hand, it goes before a District Judge or Deputy District Judge, it is more likely to be scrutinised more closely. My gut-feeling is that a DJ or DDJ is more likely to throw such an application out after hearing about non-receipt of CT bills, etc.. This happened with Community Charge until stipendiary magistrates (what DJs and DDJs used to be called) started questioning local authorities as to why the person had not received their CC bill and payment book. My local magistrates court threw out a number of CC cases because the local authority could not prove the bills and payment books had actually been sent to the people they were accusing of non-payment. I think the high number of cases started alarm bells ringing. The number of cases dropped significantly after cases were thrown out.

[enquirer]

Re: Looking for advice please, expat living in US, parents getting harassed

I asked her where my bills were for the six months owed, and she said it was down to me to pay whether or not i'd ever been billed.

We are supposed to be clairvoyant now?

Try writing asking for that to be confirmed in writing. Some of them are stupid enough ...