Council tax

[Tennessee]

Please can someone guide me
have requested council tax provide statement of account for last 5 years
paying £50 direct to council on order. The debit not going down. Should be 1200 still 1800
each time I contact ct dept I passed over to court officer who refuses to assist
any help. Grateful

[lgfa92]

If the monies are being paid then they are going somewhere, clearly the question is where are they ending up ...

Last time I dealt with a case like this it took a good while to get it sorted for a client, the council gave the run-around and even managed to create a false balance (which was a software error, but still...). A lot of it is a case of making sure that the right questions are being asked to try and determine what is happening to get the answer. - it's not always easy if you're not experienced with it and how the systems work.

If the initial enquiries (assuming they're asking the right questions) aren't getting anywhere then there's the right way to go about escalating the process through the council (and eventually, if required, the Local Government Ombudsman).

[Tennessee]

Hi. I’m not allowed to deal with anyone else in the Council Tax Department other than the court officer. Who flat out refused when I sent the email further up the chain of command received 4 weeks later a snotty email and a excel spreadsheet sheet set of figures. Â*Accordingly they don’t match the order from magistrates court nor the letter from the duty solicitor on the day.. this came about as I’m trying to clear debts. I get NO benefits live on 1.77 per fortnight. Â*I’m trying to get my debts clearedÂ*

[Tennessee]

I simply asked for a forensic statement of account. And got an A4 sheet of numbers that meant nothing
please help

Â*

[lgfa92]

The numbers will be confusing if you're not used to dealing with them (some of the responses I've had from councils for clients have been horrendous if you didn't know how to read them).

It would need a look at the figures and time to sit down and go through them to make sense before anyone could advise further - is it a copy of the actual transactions from their system they sent in the spreadsheet? . If it is, then it's likely northgate's sx3 system - I used that system daily for a good decade and know how difficult it is to work out as they can also include various internal system adjustments.

[Tennessee]

All I get is they’ve added costs when court removed costs. A large amount was remitted and the rest was halved. It was then brought under 2k (1800) I’ve already paid 800 off yet I’m still showing I owe 1600 which can’t be right. Â*getting anything from Council is like pulling teeth especially if she digs her heels in and refuses. I’ve gone up chain of command once by stating that as a customer I have the right to know. I don’t get housing benefits. I only get 1.77pw Â*I’m trying to clear my debts. But this isn’t helpful. Â*Â*

[Tennessee]

The council also refused my GDPR request and SAR. They requested data. For example passport, driving licence, bank statement, council tax bill. Â*It’s getting bloody sillyÂ*

[lgfa92]

All I get is they’ve added costs when court removed costs. A large amount was remitted and the rest was halved. It was then brought under 2k (1800) I’ve already paid 800 off yet I’m still showing I owe 1600 which can’t be right. Â*getting anything from Council is like pulling teeth especially if she digs her heels in and refuses. I’ve gone up chain of command once by stating that as a customer I have the right to know. I don’t get housing benefits. I only get 1.77pw Â*I’m trying to clear my debts. But this isn’t helpful. Â*Â*

It you're struggling to figure it out then you need someone, somewhere, to look at it properly and see what is what. It is often assumed council tax is straight forward, it isn't once you get past the surface, and it should be treated in the same way as other tax legislation.(If it was always straight forward I wouldn't have a business).

Your answer is probably in the data you have, it's just a case of being able to tease the answer out.

court removed costs

Can you clarify exactly what you mean in respect of this ?

The council also refused my GDPR request and SAR. They requested data. For example passport, driving licence, bank statement, council tax bill. Â*It’s getting bloody sillyÂ*

They are likely looking to confirm identity first, this is what they should be doing.

[Tennessee]

Hi LGFA92 what do I need to send you. Â*Do you have an email as I don’t want to put to much personal details on open forum. I can then also provide further details on email. Â* In case this gets read by the councilÂ*

[lgfa92]

Hi LGFA92 what do I need to send you. Â*Do you have an email as I don’t want to put to much personal details on open forum. I can then also provide further details on email. Â* In case this gets read by the councilÂ*

Unfortunately a post like this will likely be treated as against the forum rules as it approaches 'off forum'. If you want to look for people dealing in council tax specifically then google should allow you to find the businesses who do.

[Tennessee]

Oh. I’m just struggling against council (it feels personal and I feel persecuted)

[lgfa92]

Oh. I’m just struggling against council (it feels personal and I feel persecuted)

I know it's difficult but, as someone who has dealt with this sort of thing professionally for many years, it is likely to need someone to take a proper look at it and advise you accordingly. I think it sounds like it's past the point of it just being something where someone could take a quick look and sort it for you and has gone in to the deeper elements of council tax.

As for the personal and persecution side, I'm not sure that I've ever worked any cases where the person doesn't feel like that, it is unfortunately the nature of the power imbalance and the legislation geared at tax collection.