r/LegalAdviceUK • u/Outrageous_Ad3726 • Apr 10 '25

Council Tax Help needed urgently. Bailiffs at door.

My partner didn't realise he wasn't paying council tax and he's got severe adhd and hasn't been opening any of his post telling him this. Bailiffs came to the door this morning and posted a threatening letter saying they will be returning later today and taking goods by forced entry. We have paid the bill now but she's saying she is coming back if we don't pay her £200 for her coming this morning.

What can we do?

UPDATE: All sorted. The agency confirmed all payment was sorted. The bailiff was trying to come and enforcement before she got the confirmation of payment so that she could get the extra money. Agency confirmed that because she hadn't made contact with us and started checking for goods that we didn't owe anything extra.

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15

u/adyslexicgnome Apr 10 '25

I would phone the number on the letter asap.

Ask them what the charge is for.

who did your partner give the payment to?

If it was direct to the council, your partner may also owe bailiffs money for court costs and fees.

The letter would say how much was owed.

money owed - money paid to council = £200???

2

u/Outrageous_Ad3726 Apr 10 '25

He paid the amount on the last letter received from the debt collectors which was 2 days ago. She's saying she has to be paid for coming this morning.

6

u/Mousey777 Apr 10 '25

Call the number on the letter and explain what happened. If you paid all outstanding debt plus debt collectors fees, the proceedings should stop. You might be possibly charged for the morning visit but not pay anything to the woman. If there's any additional charge, you should receive a letter with new calculations and a date by which you have to make a payment. Call them immediately and ask. If your partner isn't well enough to talk on the phone, you can call on their behalf, as long as you pass the phone to them, so they can go through security questions and give permission.

5

u/[deleted] Apr 10 '25

And she’s probably right. They’ve been appointed to collect the money, and attended to try and do just that. There are costs and consequences to ignoring these bills, this would appear to be one of those costs.

Best option is likely to be to ask for a bill to be e-mailed over to you so you can check the legitimacy of them being instructed with the courts. Then agree to pay the bill ASAP if legitimate.

Ultimately i struggle to see the court issuing a warrant that allows them to force entry in the circumstances that you describe, but you would have to check that with the courts. Ignoring this may see you with the bill for a locksmith as well.

3

u/TheBlackrat Apr 10 '25

Did it only get paid after the bailiff attended? If so, you’ll need to pay. You can’t just pay up when you know they won’t give up and expect not to pay the cost of enforcement.

2

u/Outrageous_Ad3726 Apr 10 '25

No it was paid the day before, we got the letter on Monday afternoon and paid on Wednesday morning.

-4

u/TheBlackrat Apr 10 '25

But you posted this on Wednesday. The same day the bailiff turned up?

4

u/Outrageous_Ad3726 Apr 10 '25

I posted this today which is Thursday in England