COUNCILS TURN TO BAILIFFS TO RECOVER TAX DEBTS

First Published by: BBC

I didn't feel safe in my own home

Debt advisors have warned of a big rise in the number of local authorities in England and Wales using bailiffs to enforce unpaid Council Tax debts during the recession. Council Tax default cases have risen by a third in the last two years to three million, government figures have revealed. 

The Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) has reported a 30% rise in the number of people seeking help to deal with bailiffs chasing unpaid Council Tax in the last three years. It said complaints of aggressive behaviour and overcharging by bailiffs were rising and has called for more support to be offered to those unable to pay.

Amanda Buchanan, one of those targeted by a bailiff, said when she had trouble paying her Council Tax bill she contacted her council, but her case was soon passed to a bailiff. Amanda's problems with debt started after a divorce. The bills started piling up and she owed £900 in Council Tax. The knock on the door came when she was breastfeeding her daughter who was aged three months at the time.

During the recession we're seeing more and more people under financial pressure, and finding it harder to meet basic bills like Council Tax. Peter Tutton, Citizens Advice Bureau: "It's one of the most personal things a mum and a baby can do," she said. "I was standing at my front door. I was in my home, my sanctuary. I'd asked him not to come in. "He physically pushed his way into my home, walked in and sat on the sofa. I didn't feel safe in my own home for months and months and months after that." 'Just wrong'

Amanda told the BBC she was charged £600 in fees by the bailiff for recovering the debt, but £400 was later returned after she got help from friend Mark O'Keeffe, who had previously worked as a bailiff. He told the BBC that debtors are often overcharged. "They do prey on the fact that most people don't know bailiff law, especially in terms of the overcharging of fees because most people won't be aware of what the fees are," Mr O'Keeffe said. "I think it is outrageous," he added. "For 95% of people who don't pay their Council Tax it is usually not a wanton refusal to pay. It is because they are struggling financially.

Former bailiff Mark O'Keeffe: 'Bailiffs should explain the fees they charge' "So to add on fees that total several hundred pounds to someone who is already struggling is just out and out wrong - criminal in some cases I would suggest." The Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) has seen a rise in the numbers of people facing bailiffs for unpaid Council Tax debts. Advisors say they are concerned at the speed with which some councils refer defaulters to bailiff firms instead of finding alternative methods of payments.

The CAB's Peter Tutton said: "The numbers of people who've come for advice about bailiffs collecting Council Tax has gone up by about 30% over the last two or three years. "During the recession we're seeing more and more people under financial pressure, and finding it harder to meet basic bills like Council Tax. So if there's aggressive enforcement against them it could make their debt problems worse."

Unclaimed benefit Councils defend the use of bailiffs because they have a legal duty to collect unpaid Council Tax, and point out that there are ways of helping people who have problems paying the tax. According to the Local Government Association (LGA), which represents councils in England and Wales, £1.8 billion in Council Tax benefit goes unclaimed. "Councils certainly don't enjoy using bailiffs and they would much prefer to help people pay their Council Tax in the first place," said Corin Thomson from the LGA.

I accept that there may be instances where bailiffs charge more than is necessary but these instances are relatively few Steven Everson, ACEA "But the worst thing people can do is put their head in the sand, and not talk to the council, because it is those cases that unfortunately sometimes end up with bailiffs."

The bailiff industry says business has been busy during the recession, but chasing debts and therefore revenue has been harder because people have less ability to pay.

The industry itself is in favour of tighter control on bailiffs because it believes the law covering their activities is too complicated and should be simplified. Steven Everson, director general of the Association of Civil Enforcement Agencies (ACEA), which represents larger bailiff firms, told the BBC that sometimes bailiffs do overcharge debtors, though he said the practice was not widespread.

"In any industry there will be individuals who don't do things according to the book, and I accept that there may be instances where bailiffs charge more than is necessary but these instances are relatively few," he said. The government says bailiffs will be regulated, but probably not for at least two years. 

READ WHAT: ERIC PICKLES ‘SECRETARY OF STATE’ SAYS ABOUT OVER-CHARGED COUNCIL TAX.

Are you paying too much Council Tax - check here?