Summons
At this
stage the Council has decided to take recovery action against the
liable person(s) to ensure that the Council Tax is paid in
full.
A complaint is made to the Magistrates Court
which allows a Summons to be issued with the authority of the
Court, which gives the liable person(s) at least 14 days notice of
the date of the Court hearing. The Summons explains to the liable
person(s) that the Council intend to ask the Magistrates to grant a
Liability Order for the amount of Council Tax outstanding plus the
costs incurred (the amount of the costs is agreed beforehand by the
Magistrates and the Council).
The liable person(s) does not
have to attend Court. There is the option to
appear in Court in person on the summonsed date to dispute the
application for the Liability Order. However, there are very few
defences against the making of a Liability Order, these
include:
- The Council Tax has not been demanded in accordance with the
statutory regulations
- The amount has been paid in full
- You are not the person who is liable to pay the Council Tax
that you have been summonsed for
- Insolvency proceedings have been initiated
The Court will not be able to
consider other reasons such as financial difficulties, an
outstanding appeal against your banding or an
outstanding benefit application. If
you feel you have a valid dispute against the
issue of a Liability Order please contact
the Council before the Hearing. For
further information on the defences please
contact the Recovery Team.
If payment of the full amount including costs
is made before the day of the Court hearing, the application for a
Liability Order will not proceed.
When a Summons is sent we include some
explanatory
notes.
This webpage was updated on
12/29/2011