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What happens if I don't pay my Council Tax?

We have staff that will help you at any stage of the collection process.

If you are struggling to pay your Council Tax bill, please contact us straight away.   We cannot help you unless you contact us.

If you think your notice is wrong, please phone, email or write to us and we will investigate for you. If you owe other debts to the Council as well, such as rent arrears or overpaid benefits, please tell us because we may be able to help you make an arrangement that takes those debts into account.

 

You may be able to get a reduction on your Council Tax bill

If you are in receipt of a low income you may be able to apply for Council Tax support.

Where to go to for advice about debt

 

Please do not ignore any letters or notices we send you about missed instalments or your council tax arrears.  

Reminders

If you fall behind with your payments, or you are paying late, we will send you a reminder. This gives you seven days to pay.

If you bring your account up to date, but fall behind again, we will send you a second reminder. 

If you don't pay or don't keep to an arrangement to pay, you will lose the right to pay in instalments. The full year's Council Tax becomes due.

If you do not pay the total balance of your Council Tax after your instalments have been cancelled, a Court Summons will be issued, so that we can apply to the Magistrates Court for a Liability Order.

Why have I received a Court Summons about council tax?

The Court Summons has been sent because our records show that you have failed to pay your Council Tax as requested, despite a reminder and/or final notice being sent to you.

If you don’t pay the total balance of your Council tax after your instalments have been cancelled, or don't tell us why you're not liable to pay, a Summons will be sent to you, so that we can apply to the Magistrates for a Liability Order.  This action will also add costs of £60.00 to your unpaid Council Tax bill.

You can avoid court if you pay the full amount shown on the Summons, including Summons costs, before the date of the hearing.

If you are unable to pay the full amount on the Summons, please contact us before the court hearing to arrange a payment plan covering what you owe.

At the hearing we’ll ask the magistrate to issue a liability order. A liability order gives the council more powers to help collect the money you owe.

You need to contact Stroud District Council if you have a valid defence and wish to attend a telephone hearing. Do NOT contact or attend the court. A list of valid defences are detailed on the summons letter.

What happens after the council tax court hearing?

We will write to you when we have got a Liability Order, asking you to make a realistic offer of payment. You will have 14 days to respond to this letter. The aim is to make an arrangement that is acceptable to both you and the Council.

If a payment arrangement isn't made or if you don't pay against the agreed payment arrangement, we will use one of the following collection methods:-

 

Attachment of Earnings

This will result in deductions being made from your earnings. The amount deducted will depend on the amount that you earn.

Deductions from Benefits

If you are receiving Universal Credit, Income Support, Jobseekers Allowance or Pension Credits and we do not reach a satisfactory agreement for paying outstanding amounts of Council Tax, we may apply to the Benefits Agency for deductions to be made.

Government regulations specify the fixed weekly amount that may be deducted.

Enforcement Agents (Bailiffs)

The Liability Order may be passed to the Enforcement Agent who will follow the Council’s Code of Practice for recovery.

If an Enforcement Agent is used, the amount you owe can increase significantly, due to the costs which will be added to your debt.

Bankruptcy

If you fail to pay in full, and owe more than £5,000, we may take action to make you bankrupt.

Committal Order

If you fail to pay in full, we will apply to the Magistrates Court for a committal order. This is an order that could send you to prison for up to 3 months, although we'll only take this step if all other efforts have failed or aren't applicable.

If you think your notice is wrong, please phone, email or write to us and we will investigate for you. If you owe other debts to the Council as well, such as rent arrears or overpaid benefits, please tell us because we may be able to help you make an arrangement that takes those debts into account.

 

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