Bluebell's Debt Thread & Hardship Claim

[Bluebell]

Re: Bluebell's Debt Thread & Hardship Claim

I've just found this on the Council website. It might be useful to other people so I'm going to post it up here:


Council Tax Recovery Processes

1.Bill issued – Payable over 10 months, April – January
Customer fails to make payment
2.1st Reminder – If customer pays within 7 days of 1st reminder normal payments can continue and no change to arrangements.
Customer pays after 1st reminder but misses or pays another instalment late

3.2nd Reminder – This is the same as the 1st reminder but notifies the customer that if another payment is missed the right to pay by instalments is lost.
If customer misses one more payment after the second reminder

4.A Final Notice - is issued requesting the remaining balance be paid within 7 days.
Non-payment after 2nd reminder or final notice

5.Summons issued – The Council will summons the customer to Court and £40.00 costs are charged to the customer.If payment is made in full by the court date, no further costs are added.
If the debt is not paid in full by the court date

6.Liability Order – The Council will go to court and request a Liability Order.The customer incurs further costs of £15.00.
Once a Liability Order has been granted

7.14-day letter- The Council will issue a letter requesting employment/benefit details.If the customer returns this information an attachment of earnings/benefit is set up.
If the customer does not respond to the 14 day letter

8.Bailiff – The council will forward the account to the bailiff.
The Bailiff will attempt to obtain monies due. Additional costs will be levied to the customer by the Bailiff

If the Bailiff fails to obtain monies due the case is returned to the Council

9.Committal – The Council will forward the case to Court for committal proceedings.The Court will decide on appropriate actions.This will be either, 1. Remit the debt, (cancel what is owing in full, or in part) 2. Set up an arrangement to pay the debt, or 3 Issue a prison sentence not exceeding 3 months.

I'm not really sure where we are on the "step by step guide" We appear already to have received a liability order but have just been charged £40. Could that be from a previous occasion?

What do you guys think about the next step being Bailiffs? I really don't want to have a bailiff visit in the next few weeks (well ever really but just now is a horrible thought). Do you think I have grounds to ask them to reconsider?

[Amethyst]

Re: Bluebell's Debt Thread & Hardship Claim

How can the judge decide you have to pay it off in one go - you don't have it. You don't have any assets for them to take. Sounds like they are passing it to the DCA then it will go to bailiffs etc. grrr. Have a look on Archer's thread just so you can see thats its not as scary as it sounds.

The last arrangement you made for £140 / month was that including the current payments or just the arrears ?

Also what was '' the amount already agreed with my colleague.''

[WendyB]

Re: Bluebell's Debt Thread & Hardship Claim

I think they could get an attachment of earnings/benefits. if they do this its out of your hands, it will be taken stright from your benefits. there's a set percentage, not sure what it is for benefits but i know its 12% on nett earnings if its wages. will look up how much it is for benefits.

[Amethyst]

Re: Bluebell's Debt Thread & Hardship Claim

I'd think step 6...on that list. Be nice if they stick to the plan.

[enaid]

Re: Bluebell's Debt Thread & Hardship Claim

Well looking at that and the way things are with you at the mo, I think it would be well worth a visit to court beit not nice. You will not get a prison sentence for sure and the other two outcomes would put it to bed for good.
I am not sure how you would skip the bailiff action though.
Just my thoughts some one will maybe look at it differently.

[WendyB]

Re: Bluebell's Debt Thread & Hardship Claim

Got this from reading Councils website (it was the first one that popped up on google) Presume its standard across the board.

Q - How much money will be taken from my wages?

A - Table A - Deductions from Weekly Earnings(1) Net Earnings (2) Deduction Rate %For attachments set up before 1st April 2007For attachments set up after 1st April 2007 Not Exceeding £55Not Exceeding £750Exceeding £55 but not £100Exceeding £75 but not £1353Exceeding £100 but not £135Exceeding £135 but not £1855Exceeding £135 but not £165Exceeding £185 but not £2257Exceeding £165 but not £260Exceeding £225 but not £35512Exceeding £260 but not £370Exceeding £355 but not £50517Exceeding £370Exceeding £505 17 in respect of the first £370 or £505 and 50% in respect of the remainder.

[WendyB]

Re: Bluebell's Debt Thread & Hardship Claim

well that was rubbish wasn't it. Try your local council website FAQ's

[tomterm8]

Re: Bluebell's Debt Thread & Hardship Claim

personally, i would assume it is between 4 and 5. You haven't recieved a summons yet, have you, in which case the court can't have ordered a liability order.

Phone them up and ask if any liability order has been granted. If a summons has been issued, then you are at point 5.

I would recommend anyone at that stage calls the national debt line, and contacts their local councilor at their clinic for help

[Amy]

Re: Bluebell's Debt Thread & Hardship Claim

Tom, she does have a summons.

[tomterm8]

Re: Bluebell's Debt Thread & Hardship Claim

Well, if she hasn't gone to court yet, she is at stage 5. Going to court is stage 6, getting the liability order is almost automatic. At that stage, the court can set repayments too, if she turns up, in which case an attachment of earnings/benefit etc might be granted.

Nothing to be scared of, but contacting the national debt line is a very good idea.


UM... has the OP looked into whether council tax benefit can be claimed, and/or whether the actual council tax is set up in the right band... does LB have a section on that, or should I point to MSE?

[Bluebell]

Re: Bluebell's Debt Thread & Hardship Claim

wwwwwooooww can't keep up with the threads - thanks so much for your replies!!!

Ame the £140 was just for the arrears - they said I had to pay it off before the beginning of the next year. I kept having to phone them back to ask for smaller instalments. Which I don't think I ever was able to pay. Sometimes I could pay part of it, but then had this year's to pay too.

I'll give the National debt line a ring and see what they say..

I looked into Council Tax benefit but wasn't eligible.

[Amy]

Re: Bluebell's Debt Thread & Hardship Claim

Not too sure about Council Tax benefit. Bluebell has been in the shoutbox and has gone to telephone the National Debtline for some extra advice.

[Bluebell]

Re: Bluebell's Debt Thread & Hardship Claim

The NDL said to write back to the council and ask them to reconsider. That they should really look into things and not penalise people just because they haven't paid. (look into the reasons for not paying). So I'll see if I can get something together).

[Bluebell]

Re: Bluebell's Debt Thread & Hardship Claim

Here is what I've come up with - I think it's a bit emotional so if someone could have a look and help me tidy it up I'd really appreciate it.

Thank you for your email which I received today. I have spoken to an advisor at the National Debtline who advised me write and ask you to reconsider your decision. I have explained my situation in detail to them and it was they who recommended I write in the first place with an offer of payment that I could realistically afford

I do not deny that I have made several agreements with the revenues team, but I have never refused to pay. I have just been unable to pay. I seriously over estimated my self-employed earnings. Each time I spoke to a member of the revenues team I believed my situation would change and that I would be able to afford the payments. Several things have happened to prevent me from earning. At the end of last year I suffered quite badly from morning sickness and was frequently unable to work. My partner had no work throughout January. At the end of January we were given 2 months’ notice to leave our home as the landlord said he wanted to carry out substantial works. I then spent the next 2 months looking for a property to move to and only found one at the end of March. We had to ask the landlord to allow us to stay an extra 10 days. During these 2 months I was unable to work as much as I hoped, I spent all my time searching for accommodation terrified of being homeless with only a few weeks remaining until the birth of my baby. My partner has now found a permanent full time job which has eased our situation but now that I am not working and have no idea when I will be able to start again we are still not in a position to be able to pay off substantial debts.

The National Debtline advisor also recommended that I ask you to review my situation as far as concerns council tax benefit. I made a claim for both council tax benefit and housing benefit and although I was given some Housing benefit the Council Tax benefit was refused. As my earnings were so low might there be a possibility that there was an error?

In your letter you say that if payment is not made as previously agreed you will have no option other than to ask a collection agency to recover the debt which will incur further costs. I hope that you will reconsider as we just do not have the funds at the moment and we have no assets. My baby is due in less than 2 weeks and I just do not know what to do next.

[Amy]

Re: Bluebell's Debt Thread & Hardship Claim

Doing it now for you Bluebell - 2 minutes