Equita - Council Tax, know basics but need more advice!

[pgilbert1]

Hi,
I'm new to this forum, I've had a quick look around but am a bit pressed for time so forgive me if I go over familiar territory...
I've had a visit (in my absence) from Equita bailiffs re: council tax. Now, I had no idea they were coming - the council got a liability order, and I offered to pay themm what I could afford, they declined, then I started threatening me with jail so I got scared and to my hardship, paid them what they asked for a couple of months. Then bang, I arrive home from work to find not one but 2 letters from Equita, asking for 2 seperate payments. Both figures seem strange, I've no idea where they got them from.
Anyway, the letters said I had 24 hours to pay and that if they did not hear from me in that time it would be taken as my refusal to pay. I tried calling (the only number given was a mobile number) but the phone is always switched off. Therefore, I can't get hold of they guy.
Now, I know the basics from doing some research, I know not to let them in, not to sign anything or believe their threats, but I need to know what they mean by this 'refusal to pay' thing. Does that mean they tell the council I'm refusing to pay? Because that's serious in that refusal to pay the council can lead to jail.
I've written to the bailiffs asking for a breakdown of fees, but what happens if I don't speak to them in the meantime?
I've had awful problems with the council, they have ignored my letters (even though they were sent recorded and I have electronic proof they were signed for) and refused my offers of what I can afford. I took the advice of the national debtline and started paying them what I offered anyway, as a gesture of goodwill. I have receipts to prove it. They sent me more letters threatning me, I got scared and paid them what they asked for for 2 months, even though it put me in extreme hardship (it meant I either couldn't pay rent or couldn't eat.) So I thought I was safe, then out of the blue I've got the bailiffs! The council are refusing to acknowledge my payments, and have expressly said they will not communicate with me further. I have receipts from the paypoint to prove I've paid. I've been to the CAB, they said contact the MP and the local councillor. I contacted them, they said it wasn't their problem, contact the CAB. What can I do?
To summarise,
1. What consequences does not speaking to bailiffs have? I can't because their phone is switched off.
2. What can I do about the council refusing to communicate with me/refusing to acknowledge my payments?
3. at the liability order 'event' at the magistrates court, I was not allowe to put my case or explain my financial situation, they tried to force me to sign an agreement saying I wold pay way more than I could afford,telling me I would go to jail if I didn't sign it. I did not sign it. They said any offer below that amount was 'refusal to pay'. Surely not??
4. I contacted the advice line of the Local Gov. Ombudsman, they siad they can't do anything until the complaint to the couincil is put through the council's complaint procedure, but the council won't put it through the procedure - they won't even speak to me!
5. Basically, how mych to the council and the bailiff interact and share info about my dealings with them at this point? I know the bailiffs can't knock down my door, or kneecap me but I'm still scared about other things? I'm all alone in the world, I'm an orphan since 15 (now 31), no family at all, no partner, no one to talk to / represent me . I'm worried the council uses this against me, thinking they can bully me.
HELP!
Many thanks in advance!

[ploddertom]

Re: Equita - Council Tax, know basics but need more advice!

I suspect what you have come up against is a company called Capita. Mant Council now outsource their back office procedures to them. They are not known for being helpful and will not willingly disclose you are not speaking to an actual Council employee. Did I also mention they own a couple of Bailiff companies one of which is called Equita - I assume you see where this is going.

Is it possible you can tell us which Council this is please?

I wouldn't worry unduly about Equita as they are easily dealt with. There is no law that says you have to deal with or speak to a Bailiff. Providing you deny him access to your home or otherwise gaining a levy on goods outside - most notably a motor vehicle - then there is little they can do but eventually return your account back to the Council for further action. You say you have been paying and have the receipts to prove this - make sure you hang on to them as this proves you are willing to pay and they may then find it hard to take further action.

There are other ways of paying - online banking, Council website or automated phone line, you may even pay in cash at the Council offices & if this is refused you must ask politely for the name & position of the person refusing as this will form the basis of a complaint against the Council.

I note what you say about your local Councillor(s) & MP and do feel they have treated you shabbily. I would be inclined to try the Leader of the Council & his opposite number. Failure there and you should write a a letter to the CEO of the Council marking both letter & envelope as Formal Complaint as this is the first stage of the complaints procedure.

[ploddertom]

Re: Equita - Council Tax, know basics but need more advice!

I assume you do claim Single Person Discount?

[bluebottle]

Re: Equita - Council Tax, know basics but need more advice!

Hi and welcome to Legal Beagles.

Equita has been involved in a string of incidents, lately, some of them serious, on this and another consumer website. The most effective way of dealing with bailiff companies who ignore what the law says they can and cannot do is to make a formal complaint against them to your local Trading Standards Department and the OFT's Credit Fitness Department. You can email your complaint to the OFT at enquiries@oft.gsi.gov.uk, inserting the words CREDIT FITNESS in the subject box. You will need to quote Equita's CRN (Company Reg. No.) which is 03168371 and CCL (Consumer Credit Licence) Number which is 0483020 in your complaint. Give a clear and concise resume of your complaint.

As for the LA, make a formal complaint to the Department for Communities and Local Government, addressing your complaints to Eric Pickles (Secretary of State) and Grant Shapps (Minister of State for Housing & Local Government). Also, get your local MP involved. The postal address for the DfCLG is -

Eland House
Bressenden Place
London
SW1E 5DU

Hope this is of help.

[Mzazi]

Re: Equita - Council Tax, know basics but need more advice!

Hi,
Equita is a subsidiary (wholly dependant) of Capita UK. From what I've heard is like a 'familly owned' company and that's why they do what they like... Brothers & sisters, husbands & wives promote each other and all work there! Fact!. Don't be intimidated by their letters, the fact that you found two letters with different price tags on them is because the bailiff (whom you are trying to ring and their mobile switched off) wants to justify that they've made two visits while in fact they haven't! They add x amount to the original debt for every visit (up to 2 or 3x visits if i am not wrong). What they should have charged you for the first letter is a small amount for sending out a first letter. Unless the judge can prove there has been a 'wilful refusal' by you to pay CT (which by the sound of it, it looks like you have fully cooperated with the Local auth), I would not worry too much. Unless the bailiff has already levied your goods (excluding beddings and white goods) and agreed and signed a payment plan which you then break it, they can not take anything away from you. If the bailiff's mobile phone is switched off, don't lose some sleep because you are worried he would turn up and take your things. Take note of how many attempts you have made to contact him without success and send a recorded letter to their office with your offer of repayments and wait for their reply. From what I heard is that the bailiffs work on commission, so the more and quicker they collect the debt in FULL the more they get higher bonuses, hence they try and intimidate you by sending you threatening and confusing letters and make themselves unavailable in order to justify their number of visits, which on may occasions they don't even knock at the door on their early visits in order to accumulate their fees!!

[bluebottle]

Re: Equita - Council Tax, know basics but need more advice!

Equita is currently under investigation by Northampton Trading Standards over fees irregularities. The number of referrals to OFT Credit Fitness Team on another consumer website leads me to believe Equita will be well and truly in the sewage effluent very soon and in very real risk of losing their CCL. It has also been found that they have been employing people as bailiffs who do not hold a valid bailiff certificate.

[pgilbert1]

Re: Equita - Council Tax, know basics but need more advice!

Hi everyone, thanks very much for all your replies, there;s some helpful info there! To answer questions, I'm dealing with Birmingham City Council. And yes, I am getting the single person discount. I'm also getting a lot of migraines.
I mentioned that they put two letters through my door; one with the total of £463.51, the other with £290.51. I'never did manage to speak to anyone, but wrote to them asking for a breakdown of fees they have charged. They replied surprisingly fast, and one thing i find is that they charged me for two visits, both of which occurred on the same day! Can they do that? I was at work, so I don't know if they came morning then afternoon, or within 5 mins of each other. Their reply also states that the original amount owing to the council is £294.61 added to which is their fee of £42.50 (for the combined visits). That balance plus that fee does not equal £463.51 unless my maths is very much mistaken! Plus there's the £290.51 from the other letter still unaccounted for. What the hell? I'm going to write to them again and ask them about the difference. I need to query with the council whhy they sent the bailiffs in the first plave when I was paying. I'm concerned about paying bailiff's fees and then finding out the council weren't supposed to use bailiffs....?

[bluebottle]

Re: Equita - Council Tax, know basics but need more advice!

Local authorities are supposed, yes, supposed, to follow correct procedures, which includes the instructing of bailiffs. It has been found that where Capita is involved this does not happen and essential steps are side-stepped. In other words, they don't follow the law to the letter, which is not only wrong, but can result in litigation against the local authority, not Capita. It is us, the taxpayers, who indemnify the likes of Capita for their cock-ups and corner-cutting. Not a penny comes out of Capita's coffers. They have earned themselves the unenviable title of "The Cock-Up Kings" as a result. I am attaching the relevant legislation governing what bailiff collecting CT can legitimately charge. I would also strongly advise you to make a complaint against Equita to the OFT's Credit Fitness Team and a complaint against Birmingham City Council to the Department of Communities and Local Government.

[ploddertom]

Re: Equita - Council Tax, know basics but need more advice!

It sounds to me as if you have 2 different Liability Orders. You need to speak to someone at the Council and ask the following questions:
1 - how many Liability Orders they have against you
2 - the dates they were obtained
3 - the addresses they were for
4 - the period of time each covers
5 - how much each one was for
6 - how much is still outstanding
7 - the dates they were passed on for enforcement
8 - the dates & amounts of any payments

[pgilbert1]

Re: Equita - Council Tax, know basics but need more advice!

No, there's just one liability order. I worte to them asking why there was so much difference is the amounts being claimed. They so far havn't been able to give me an answer. I have hhowever discovered that they are charging me £126 for a levy that was never made. I wrote to Equita and pointed this out and they won't deal with me, they said I have to speak to the individual bailiff concerned, the guy who won't answer his phone. I prefer to write rather than call anyway, as there is a proper record of the discussion that way. It looks like it may be my word against theirs that a levy was made - but they did not get into the house - I was not at home to let them in, no one else lives here and it was clear that they had not forced their way in. All doors and windows were locked. I also don't have a car, and there's nothing in the garden except a rubbish bin.
I also wrote and complained to the council about all this and they have not responded. It was about 10 days ago that I wrote to them recorded delivery.

[bluebottle]

Re: Equita - Council Tax, know basics but need more advice!

As such, Equita is directly responsible for the conduct and actions of their bailiff and the local authority is ultimately liable through the legal instrument of agency. If the bailiff is claiming the levy, they have to prove they have levied on goods and on what goods. They also have to prove how they levied on the goods they claim they have levied upon. They don't get it that easy.

Write a Signed For letter (Recorded/Special Delivery) to Equita asking them the following questions about the levy they are claiming -

1. On what date and at what time was this levy made?
2. What goods were levied upon?
3. How did the bailiff levy upon the goods?
4. Who else was present when the levy was made and what was/were their name(s)?

If, as I suspect, the bailiff looked in through a window and listed goods he/she could see, the levy is invalid as they have to physically gain entry in order to levy upon goods, unless the goods levied upon are outside the property, in which case, a levy on such goods would be valid.

There are two offences this scrote bailiff has possibly committed, namely -

a. Attempted Fraud by False Misrepresentation, contrary to Section 2, Fraud Act 2006
b. Rendering A False Account, contrary to Section 17, Theft Act 1968.

Equita have possibly committed offences under Section 18, Theft Act 1968 and Section 12, Fraud Act 2006. It should be noted that these two offences apply where offences in a. and b. have been committed in a company's name, with or without the knowledge of the directors and other company officers and managers.

I would certainly make a formal complaint to OFT Credit Fitness Team and Trading Standards against Equita and the Department for Communities and Local Government against the local authority involved.

I have also noted that you made an offer of payment before the local authority involved Equita and the local authority refused to accept your offer of payment. This may amount to a breach of the Council Tax (Administration and Enforcement) Regulations 1992 (as amended) under the provisions of Regulation 45. Don't forget that there is a provision under Regulation 46 for CT debtors to have the local authority summonsed to appear before the magistrates court that issued the original Liability Order (LO) and explain their actions. Under Regulation 46, the court has the power to order the local authority involved to pay compensation/damages where appropriate and/or order the local authority to desist from behaving in a certain manner. This is where there is evidence of Irregular Distress, that is, where the bailiff has executed the LO in an illegal or unlawful manner or has acted outside the bounds of the Regulations.

The first step is to put the bailiff and Equita on the spot by asking the questions I have listed. If they can't or won't answer, I would suspect Irregular Distress and, possibly, Fraud.