Reluctant - summons for Council Tax Arrears

[outlawlgo]

Re: Reluctant - summons for Council Tax Arrears

.....One of those two members of staff add:-
"Your application for CTR was received in this office on 23/6/14, the day before the summons was issued, there is case law that suggests an application for a reduction is not valid defence against the issue of a liability order, as there is no guarantee that an application will lead to an award of CTR. (E.g there may be no entitlement). As your claim was processed on the 3/7/14 there was no delay in dealing with your claim for a CTR and I am unable to agree that the summons was issued incorrectly due to your application for CTR."

Technically the Council have the law on its side but you might find some points to argue on the reasonableness of taking Court action whilst a dispute or claim is ongoing. Although different circumstances, there should be some relevant information in the post linked to below:

summons for COUNCIL TAX billed with CT benefit then told differently

[Reluctant]

Re: Reluctant - summons for Council Tax Arrears

Is it not true enough to think that for every law in favour of one side, there can be another to counter it?

1. I am not legally or technically the person named in the Summons. I married, Council knew that. They title me as Miss.
They spell my Cristian name incorrectly so I show both Birth Certificate and Marriage Licence which can be checked against the Electoral role and their own official records of those and other correct documents.
2. By their omission they approve CTR and have so far back-dated it to run from March (& may yet do so by a further3 months), They state they receive claim the day before the summons was issued.
3. On the summons, it is written that no Liability Order will be made if the amount is paid before the date allotted for me to appear in Court and I did pay, have receipts, showed those but they went ahead and wrote it anyway.

As said earlier, perhaps LO was written for the £318 because I wrote on a paying slip for the 2nd & 3rd month, "Paid under duress". which would have brought me up to date IF I had not been refused by the Council to continue to pay by x 10 instalment as per original bill.

I have since read a fair bit on the legal definition and meanings to using "Under duress" as a defence.
It happens to fit fairly well. I was not acting as directed by the Councils Reclamation Department in the way they told me was the only way I could avoid Court Fine, further penalty and having a Liability Order made in my name.
Therefore it would seem as if I was acting with flagrant and foolhardy disregard to the Law but I refuse to enter into a DD agreement with the Council and my bank as I could not be sure I would have income with which to cover any DD.
To my mind a failure to abide by such a contract if I had been forced to enter into one would have been to my greater detriment (having seen how interest charges increase when people get in debt) and I think it would be fraudulent to make a promise when I did not know for sure I could keep it.
I was under threat and had it explained how I might be made bankrupt, be recorded as a bad debtor and knew there was risk to myself and family of losing our home, if not immediate, it was still a threat of things to come.
Under those circumstances I was obliged to act as I did. And I told them I would continue to pay using old Bill slips until I could withdraw my ISA as cash and pay the Court in full the sum of £1,034.00 the Summons dated 24/6/14 state I had to pay by the 10/7/14.

14/7/14 Liability Order had £398.00 as being an amount I was apparently Liable to pay on the 10th July even though Council had already taken the £80 cost and generated an incorrect Bill for £711.15 dated 9/7/14 and handed it to me in person on that day when I pay in cash the final balance that he calculate was for £393.15

There will be record I request appointment for help to apply for CTR and available courses, going back as far as March/April of this yr if not having on record need for assistance from 2012 and 2013.

It was the Council who were unable to provide earlier appointment and suggest I 1st obtain other benefit. Either WFTC, JSA, ESA, DLA, IS or be enrolled in full-time education.
As proof of being in receipt of or reason for denial of those benefits would be the only way they could fast track claim for CTR because
having no income would negate they assess entitled based on 'notional income', meaning they would have to make assumption as if I had claimed.
I 1st had to prove that I was unable to be given other benefits by applying or receiving in writing letters of refusal, stating the grounds as to why I was refused. Benefit Helplines would not do that and my word that I was not entitled based on my circumstance was not considered valid as I was not a recognised person qualified to make that assumption.

This, as with other posts I made here, is not well constructed. I keep adding/editing & repeating. I lack objectivity.