levy on a vehicle

[timbowmar]

Hi Guys,

This is my first post on here so plz be patient.

I recently have had dealings with Rossendales who were acting on behalf of Rotherham Borough Council.

I made a couple of Council Tax payments late (although they were made within the month that they were due), as such the council gained a liability order against me, as they do.

After making another payment late (yet again within the month it was due) I had a visit and a letter through the letter box from the bailifs at a cost of £24.50, my wife pa****d at this and went and paid the council another £100 as the letter demanded, unfortunatley the letter stated that the payment should have been made to Rossendales, hence another visit from the Bailiffs and a charge of £18.00, this time the bailiff visited I was in so I answered the door. having been told it was the bailiff from Rossendales. I went back inside locked the door and put a coat on. I then went out to speak to him locking the door behind me. I don't think the man liked my attitude very much as when he asked if we could discuss this inside, I said "no" and that if he was cold he should buy a coat.

Anyway after I told him that I would be making no payments to him and that I would only deal with the council he left leaving me with another letter stating that if I did not make another payment before the 26th (i.e 7 days) he would come back and levy on my property. On the 25th I left work early to ring the council and get this matter sorted out with them, only to find upon entering the house a walking possession agreement stating that the bailiff had levied on my car that was sat on the drive and that in doing so I had incurred another £50 of costs.

I immediatley rang the council and told them that I would not pay any money over to Rossendales and that I would only deal with them, the lady said that I needed to speak to Rossendales and pay them, to which I responded by enquiring as to whether they were refusing to accept my payment. At this point the lady put me on hold and took advice from her superior. she then stated that we could pay the council as long as we included Rossendales fees, I agreed that I owed the 1st and 2nd visit fees, but I wasn't happy about the levy fee. However I agreed to pay the outstanding balance(£316) in 2 installments, 50% now and 50% next month .

Im now getting to the point ( sorry for the length of the post, but I felt the need to vent) The final £150 installment is due next week and I'm wondering if the levy fee is enforceable, as no walking possession agreement has been signed? as the lion share of this final payment is costs, I don't want to pay anybody money that they are not entitled to.

Once again I'm sorry for the length of the post and any info would be appreciated

Thanks Tim

[Amy]

Re: levy on a vehicle

If I were you I'd be writing to the council and questioning why they decided to take out a Liability Order against you in the first place.

It would appear that it was nothing more than an exercise in raising more revenue. Point this out to them and also suggest that they might like to make amends by recalling the debt from the bailiff and cancelling the associate fees.

[timbowmar]

Re: levy on a vehicle

Rotherham Borough Council, have a policy that states if you are sent 2 reminders they will then demand the full amount, if you can't pay the full amount then they get a liability order against you
Personally I think it sucks, especially in todays financial climate when people are really struggling to make ends meet, the last thing they need is an over zealous council acting like this and costing them more money.

[Amy]

Re: levy on a vehicle

Personally I think it sucks, especially in todays financial climate when people are really struggling to make ends meet, the last thing they need is an over zealous council acting like this and costing them more money.

So fight it and complain.

[timbowmar]

Re: levy on a vehicle

Don't worry,
In Rotherham we have a local paper that isn't adverse to abit of council bashing and a well worded letter in the editors page, could possibly put the cat among the pigeons, however I'm still not sure as to whether I have an arguement with the council over the bailiffs levy fees?.

[Amy]

Re: levy on a vehicle

The fee for a levy is £24.50 for the first £100 due and the next £400 due is 4% so they have charged you too much quite apart from the fact that they levied a day too early.

Is your car on any kind of finance?

The only way you will get anywhere with these fees is by complaining to the council.

Have you checked to see if the bailiff who visited you is certificated?

[timbowmar]

Re: levy on a vehicle

No I didn't check if he was certificated, as I have only seen him once and when I told him to buy a coat if he was cold, he got in his car and drove off, where would I find this information?

[Amy]

Re: levy on a vehicle

Right here Certificated Bailiff Register - Legal Beagles Consumer Forum

[WendyB]

Re: levy on a vehicle

Not sure if your council has different dates you can chose, if you pay by direct debit. Mine does, one of which is 28th, My helpful woman in the Council tax enforcement office told me that if you don't specify another date, then the due date automatically defaults to the 1st of the month, which means you are then late.She advised that as soon as I get this years bill, to set up the dd for 28th. This in effect gives an extra month to make the payment ( I know it only helps the first time but it is a help). I know this doesn't help much as to the current situation but might be useful for future....to avoid any more laibility orders..not sure if the same arrangements can be made if paying by cash instalments..
Very strongly worded letters to council pointing out that they are vicariously responsible for the actions of their bailffs have quite a good effect too, I've found.