Threatened with prison today.

[John139]

Re: Threatened with prison today.

A local authority cannot lawfully refuse any payment. If Whyte & Co are making it difficult or impossible to pay, then it can be argued they are actively preventing you from paying and that the Council, who are legally-liable for their actions, could be taken to be condoning their actions. If Serco is acting for your local Council and know of or are encouraging Whyte & Co's behaviour, just remember they are one of the companies exposed as defrauding the Ministry of Justice out of millions of pounds. They are not to be trusted. Pay what you can realistically-afford via the Council's automated payment system or internet banking. I would strongly advise you to get your ward councillors and MP involved in your case.

This is one of the big issues I have had. I don't have a debit or credit card so I have not had a mechanism to pay off any of the debt.

Especially as when all of this started I contacted the national debt line who suggested I don't pay using paypoint in case the council refuse payment (something I now know wouldn't happen but at the time believed)

I have today paid £300 on the paypoint but won't have any spare money for 4 weeks until next payday. I'm just scared I get a summons in that time.

[John139]

Re: Threatened with prison today.

Thank you all for taking the time with this I can't tell you how much I appreciate it.

[CleverClogs]

Re: Threatened with prison today.

Also this looks quite interesting from June 2013 - http://www.sercoglobal.com/new-appro...rrock-council/

This has included calling debtors outside of normal office hours, tailored correspondence and text messages, the introduction of special debt management surgeries to help those people who owe payments and, where required, direct interaction with bailiffs. The new partnership approach with bailiffs has seen collections increase by 57% in this area over the last 12 months.

Serco are not nice people; from their performance on the offender tagging contract, one might even doubt if they are inherently honest.

But yet:

“Because of the shared partnership with Serco, the improvements and new procedures to address bad debts have not had a direct cost to the Council and the achievements in terms of payment recovery speak for themselves,” adds Cllr Phil Smith, Thurrock Council’s portfolio holder for central services. “Historical debt is a serious financial thorn in the side for the vast majority of local authorities around the country and it requires a concerted and sustained effort to overcome the problem.”

And:

Serco provides a wide range of customer management services for Thurrock Council including Revenues collection and Benefits administration. It also delivers other services ranging from procurement, HR and payroll to adult community solutions.

So it would appear that the so-called Debt Management troll is actually working for Serco.

[bizzybob]

Re: Threatened with prison today.

They would be very silly indeed if they summonsed you for a committal hearing as a willful won't pay as they are intimating when and if you then produce payment receipts in court......

[Amethyst]

Re: Threatened with prison today.

Serco are not nice people; from their performance on the offender tagging contract, one might even doubt if they are inherently honest.

But yet:

And:

So it would appear that the so-called Debt Management troll is actually working for Serco.

Exactly xx

Do we have a name of this gentleman?

[bluebottle]

Re: Threatened with prison today.

The debt management guy at the council said that my actions constituted a refusal to pay, regardless of the fact I told him I would pay £300.00 today. Stercus bovi, and further from Amethyst's post

Also this looks quite interesting from June 2013 - http://www.sercoglobal.com/new-appro...rrock-council/ these tactics are quite likely unlawful.

As to an actual committal to prison, if they were stupid enough to try, it could well blow up in their faces, as they have acted unlawfully by attempting to make affordable payments impossible.

Nothwithstanding, BB, if they went into court and alleged refusal to pay, knowing they had actively prevented and refused to accept payment, and the court got wind of it, the council would be royally stuffed. Taking account of the behaviour of Whyte & Co, Thurrock Council and, possibly, Serco, all three of them may well be acting unlawfully. It is vitally important the OP gets their ward councillors and MP onboard asap.

[John139]

Re: Threatened with prison today.

James De La Fuente

He was incredibly rude and condescending, so much so it took my breath away and as I was still reeling from the preison threat, I could barely reply.

[John139]

Re: Threatened with prison today.

I had to google Stercus bovi

[CleverClogs]

Re: Threatened with prison today.

The DEbt managment officer is the guys title and his letters are all on headed thurrock council paper.

His use of official - or official-looking - stationery means precisely nothing, as it seems that Thurrock Council have actually been daft enough to let Serco into the Council Offices to run their Revenue Collection operation.

One might believe it to be an act of folly that could only be surpassed by appointing Count Dracula to run the Blood Transfusion Service.

[bizzybob]

Re: Threatened with prison today.

Nothwithstanding, BB, if they went into court and alleged refusal to pay, knowing they had actively prevented and refused to accept payment, and the court got wind of it, the council would be royally stuffed. Taking account of the behaviour of Whyte & Co, Thurrock Council and, possibly, Serco, all three of them may well be acting unlawfully. It is vitally important the OP gets their ward councillors and MP onboard asap.

Most definitely, and hopefully the local members will be savvy enough to realise that their officers and Serco are royally shafting them and setting them up for in extremis a Surcharge or criminal charges.

[Laurieloo2]

Re: Threatened with prison today.

Thank you all for taking the time with this I can't tell you how much I appreciate it.

Hope you deal with it soon and put the experiance behind you!
As others have said, make the monthly repayments via internet banking or direct by councils website, ignore the debt collection company they are trying their luck. They will try anything as lets face it who is going to stop them???!!! Dont fall for it, pay off what you can every month, notify the council in writing (would send recorded post to get signature) that you are paying £XX on XXX date every month, as long as you stick to it you will find it will subside. And as Bluebottle said I would get local MP involved writing to him detailing events. A lot of local MPs even have Twitter and Facebook memberships so you could also post direct to their page, im sure you would get a response when its there for all to see!!
Let us know how you get on but please dont have any sleepless nights about it, set up the payments, write the necessary letters and know that you are paying off the debt - any court would see that and throw it out anyway!

[bluebottle]

Re: Threatened with prison today.

Most definitely, and hopefully the local members will be savvy enough to realise that their officers and Serco are royally shafting them and setting them up for in extremis a Surcharge or criminal charges.

I am wondering if this Serco troll has the personal motto of "num minus obnoxium".

One tactic to use with people like this is to say to them "Am I to understand that you are refusing to accept any payment whatsoever?" It shuts them up, if nothing else. Those foolish enough to try and respond quite often, in my experience, end up digging themselves into a hole.

[Amethyst]

Re: Threatened with prison today.

Well James de la Fuent from Essex's linked in is private but he is 'connected' with Kevin Tuttle who is a Debt Manager at Thurrock Council - can't see if James is employed by Thurrock Council directly or Serco. Doesn't really matter in the grand scheme of things as he is acting on behalf of the council regardless.

[CleverClogs]

Re: Threatened with prison today.

I would strongly advise you to get your ward councillors and MP involved in your case.

Find them at https://www.writetothem.com

[CleverClogs]

Re: Threatened with prison today.

James De La Fuente

A fine, traditional, English name - and so common-place that I had little difficulty finding him...
http://uk.linkedin.com/pub/james-de-...nte/23/831/522

He was incredibly rude and condescending, so much so it took my breath away and as I was still reeling from the prison threat, I could barely reply.

He does not - of course - reside in Thurrock. His home town is Southend-on-Sea.

I had to google Stercus bovi

Just click on this:
caput jacobi est plenis stercus