Council writes off tax and business rate debts worth more than £80k

Cabinet members agreed to write off £32,160.91 council tax debts and business rates arrears worth £50,205.37, as well as two cases of housing benefit overpayment totalling £2,365.33, at its meeting on Thursday.

The council has managed to collect just over 55 per cent of the £52.4 million council tax due this year in the first six months of 2019/20 however, a cabinet report said.

And 57 per cent of the £33.6m business rates due for 2019/20 had been collected during the same period up to the end of September.

But the report added: “Whilst our collection rates are good, regrettably not all of the monies owed to the council can be collected.

“All reasonable and lawful attempts are made to recover all amounts due. In the first instance this involves the issue of bills, reminders and final notices, followed by summonses in the magistrates court where the warning notices are not effective.

“At all stages of this process, (council tax) debtors are encouraged to engage in voluntary arrangements to repay their arrears, to prevent the need for formal action. Where necessary and when liability orders are granted by magistrates, the council uses its powers to make deductions from earnings and benefits of (council tax) debtors, where it can, and instructs Enforcement Agents where such deductions are not possible or appropriate.

“In the most severe cases and for debts exceeding £5,000, the council will consider personal bankruptcy action against individuals.

“In the case of business rates our collection efforts are sometimes frustrated by weaknesses in legislation. Rates are due from the occupiers rather than the owners of property and where the occupier is a company, we can only recover from that company.

“Some proprietors will strip a company of its assets, or dissolve the company before we have had an opportunity to implement our recovery procedures. A new company is then formed in a similar style, to trade from the same premises.

“Central Government has previously undertaken to review the loopholes that exist in rating and company legislation, though no changes have yet been received.”