10. What happens after court?
When the magistrates grant a liability order we:
- will add a cost of £10 to your debt
- have additional powers to recover the unpaid Council Tax
- can demand certain information from you which you are legally required to give. You can provide this information online now.
Our extra powers include:
Attachment of earnings order
An attachment of earnings order means we can order your employer to deduct the amount you owe direct from your wages/salary and pay it straight to us. The amount your employer deducts for us will depend on your salary level. The deductions are:
From monthly earnings:
- Up to £300 - nothing
- Over £300 and up to £550 - 3%
- Over £550 and up to £740 - 5%
- Over £740 and up to £900 - 7%
- Over £900 and up to £1,420 - 12%
- Over £1,420 and up to £2,020 - 17%
- Over £2,020 - 17% in respect of the first £2,020 and 50% in respect of the remainder.
From weekly earnings:
- Up to £75 - nothing
- Over £75 and up to £135 - 3%
- Over £135 and up to £185 - 5%
- Over £185 and up to £225 - 7%
- Over £225 and up to £355 - 12%
- Over £355 and up to £505 - 17%
- Over £505 - 17% in respect of the first £505 and 50% in respect of the remainder.
From daily earnings:
- Up to £11 - nothing
- Over £11 and up to £20 - 3%
- Over £20 and up to £27 - 5%
- Over £27 and up to £33 - 7%
- Over £33 and up to £52 - 12%
- Over £52 and up to £72 - 17%
- Over £72 - 17% in respect of the first £72 and 50% in respect of the remainder.
In addition, your employer may also charge you a further £1 towards their costs in making each deduction and sending it to us.
Employers will find more information in the Attachments of Earnings detailed guidance notes.
Deductions from benefit
If you get Income Support (IS), Job Seeker's Allowance (JSA), Employment Support Allowance (ESA) or Guarantee Pension Credit (GPC), we may be able to apply for deductions to be made direct from your benefit.
Enforcement agents
We currently use Jacobs Marston Holdings ánd Hambury Tilmond to act on our behalf to collect both Council Tax and Business Rates following the issue of a liability order.
Bankruptcy
If you owe £5,000 or more in Council Tax, we may start bankruptcy action against you to recover the debt. We will send you a statutory demand giving you 21 days to pay the full amount.
If you do not settle your bill we will present a petition for bankruptcy in the High Court.
If we issue bankruptcy proceedings this means you may:
- meet with the official receiver, and if appointed, a trustee who will thoroughly investigate your affairs
- have any business you own closed immediately
- lose any assets of real value, including your home and life insurance, etc
- lose any assets you may acquire during the term of your bankruptcy such as inheritances, insurance settlements, or growth of asset value in your home
- have your building society, creditors and landlords informed immediately
- have all bank accounts and credit cards closed. No UK bank will give bankrupts any sort of bank account. Anything you might be leasing or buying on hire purchase, such as your car, will be immediately returned to the owner
- lose professional and business status, have some employment opportunities prejudiced, face rejection from many associations and societies
- be refused credit for years after your discharge
Your trustee will have to settle every debt, whether it is in the order or not.
Charging order
If you owe Council Tax of £1,000 or more and own a property, we may apply to the county court for a charging order. Once the order is granted we will be able to enforce the sale of the property in order to clear your outstanding Council Tax. It also means that you can't sell the property without paying what you owe.