bailiffs council tax

[angelj34]

I got in arrears with my council tax at beginning of year and i now owe 429 pound,I rang them up straight away to arrange a payment plan as i can not afford to pay it all in one go,they told me i had to pay quite a bit off as it needs to be paid off in 3 months before they can give me a payment plan,anyway they told me i have to pay 155 as the first payment,i told them i can not afford this and offered to pay 70 pound a month,tthis is not enough i was told but they said they would put a note on their computers,to say i had paid this but they would not be able to stop the debt collector calling until i have paid the 155 pound.Last week i had popped to the dentist,my son wwas in the house and the debt collector called my son said i was out i would be about an hour, the debt collector went then called back a min later to ask my son what car i had my son said a silver clio,then he left,is he allowed to be asking children questions ? He did not call back! This week i have received another letter which has been hand posted as i havent been there my mother has been to collect my post, and my bill has gone from 359 to 579 pound just from reciving 2 letters also there is an inventry list on the letter and it has the reg of a silver clio which isnt mine but a neighbours all because he has taken the information from a child and got it all wrong. I rang the agency yesterday to ask why is he asking my son questions,all they said is he would not have mentioned any details ! Thats ok then is it.And now because the debt has gone up i now have to pay 180 pound by nxt thursday otherwise the debt collectors will be out again,i can not afford this and have offered to pay 70 a month but they have said they need the 180 pound first then the lowest they can go is 120 a month. Is this allowed what can i do

[Amy]

Re: baliffs council tax

This is utter rubbish. You do not need to pay the bailiffs anything, you can and should pay the council directly. The council cannot refuse your payments and they should, or be made to, help you if you are in difficulty, which you clearly are.

It is not an offence to be unable to pay your council tax, it is an offence to refuse to pay it.

What is more, I would be very unhappy about a bailiff talking to a child and for these reasons I would demand that the council take your debt back from the bailiffs.

How old is your son? Ask your council if they are aware their bailiffs talk to children.

[angelj34]

Re: baliffs council tax

Thanks for your reply, My son is 11. My mum was there at the time but was up stairs.I willl phone the council and tell them this and ask if they can take it back and i pay them instead.

[David-G1ZQC]

Re: baliffs council tax

Hi.
You say your son is 11.
Officials and the like KNOW they are not allowed to talk to children without a responsible adult present at ALL times. These questions should not have been asked.
Call the police and lodge a complaint that this lowlife questioned a minor. They HAVE to take it seriously.
I work with disabled children and young adults daily and have to be CRB (criminal records bureau) checked. It is clearly stated in the child protection act.

David.

[Amy]

Re: baliffs council tax

Thanks for your reply, My son is 11. My mum was there at the time but was up stairs.I willl phone the council and tell them this and ask if they can take it back and i pay them instead.

You don't ask, you tell.

[angelj34]

Re: baliffs council tax

Thanks for that, i will do im not going to let this go.
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ok will do no asking, just telling them .

[Amy]

Re: baliffs council tax

Good girl xx

[angelj34]

Re: bailiffs council tax

Thank you very much x

[David-G1ZQC]

Re: baliffs council tax

Hi again.

Just to make things more clear.
During training these people are taught to lie cheat and make fake excuses etc.
However, to keep within the law the sequence of events upon knocking at the door should have been: -
If a child answers the door they should have said "Hello, is there anyone in"? Who is looking after you"?
The child will have answered in this case "Grandma".
To this the official asks "Can you get her for me please"?
All is obvious from here. At no time should he have asked any questions relating to the reason why he was there.
It is clear that the questions asked were out of order and should not have been asked. It is equal to interviewing a minor, without consent and is unlawful.

I must stress that I am not an expert in this area but have had 10 years experience working with vulnerable young people. We do NOT ask probing questions of any kind, without another staff member present.

Good luck David. :beagle:

[angelj34]

Re: bailiffs council tax

Thanks david for your help