If you miss a payment, we will start the council tax recovery process. This process has 3 stages:
- Reminder
- Court summons
- Liability order
Reminder notice
We'll send you a reminder notice the first time you miss a payment. You'll have 7 days to make the payment or call us to agree a payment arrangement.
If you do nothing, you will not get a second reminder notice.
If you miss another payment
If you paid or agreed a payment arrangement within 7 days of the first reminder, you will get one more reminder if you miss another payment. If you continue to miss payments, you will get a final notice.
Final notice
If you get a final notice, you will lose your right to pay by instalments and payment for the full year will be due within 7 days. You can also call us to agree a payment arrangement.
If you do nothing, you will get a court summons.
Court summons
If you get a court summons, you will be liable to pay for the full year, plus £92.50 costs. You can also call us to agree a payment arrangement.
If you do nothing, we will apply to the court for a liability order. If you do not attend court, the hearing will still go ahead.
Liability order
If the court makes a liability order, you must pay the amount you owe, including costs within 14 days. You can also call us to agree a payment arrangement.
If you do nothing, we can:
- take money from your wages, known as an attachment of earnings order
- take money from your benefits, known as an attachment of benefits order
- ask an enforcement agency to collect your debt
- start bankruptcy or liquidation proceedings against you in court
- apply for a charging order against your property. This means a court can force you to sell your house to pay the debt.
You could get a fine of up to £1,000 if you do not give us information about your work or benefits when asked to do so.
