Summary: Ms X complained about how the Council has pursued her for a historic council tax debt. We do not find the Council at fault.

The complaint

1. Ms X complains about the way the Council has pursued her for an outstanding Council Tax debt from 2012. Ms X says she was not aware of this debt until she was contacted by an enforcement agent in 2024, which has caused considerable uncertainty and distress.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word fault to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. If there has been fault which has caused significant injustice, or that could cause injustice to others in the future we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
3. We cannot investigate late complaints unless we decide there are good reasons. Late complaints are when someone takes more than 12 months to complain to us about something a council has done. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26B and 34D, as amended)
4. If we are satisfied with an organisation’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(i), as amended)

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What I have and have not investigated

5. We cannot usually investigate complaints about events that took place more than 12 months before they were raised with the Ombudsman. We can only exercise discretion to look back further if there are good reasons to do so.
6. Ms X first brought her complaint to the Ombudsman in January 2025, meaning anything that happened prior to January 2024 would be considered a late complaint.
7. However, Ms X has said she was not aware of the issues complained about before she was contacted by a debt recovery service in 2024. For this reason, I have exercised discretion to look back to 2012.

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How I considered this complaint

8. I considered evidence provided by Ms X and the Council as well as relevant law, policy and guidance.
9. Ms X and the Council had an opportunity to comment on my draft decision. I considered any comments before making a final decision.

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What I found

Relevant law and policy

10. The Council Tax (Administration and Enforcement) Regulations 1992 cover both the way councils collect payments of council tax and the way councils can recover council tax debt. The Tribunals, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007 and associated regulations cover the way enforcement agents may recover debts.
11. The council tax bill for the year is due on 1 April. A council will usually collect payment through monthly instalments. If the liable person misses any instalment, the council will send them a reminder. If a payment is still not made or a further payment missed, then the entire outstanding balance will be due (that is the full amount for the rest of the year).
12. To use the various powers available to it to recover unpaid council tax, a council must apply to a magistrate’s court for a liability order against those it believes are liable. Once a council has a liability order it can take recovery action and there is no time limit on taking recovery action.
13. A liability order gives a council the legal power to take enforcement action to collect the council tax and court costs owed. The most commonly used powers are asking for deductions from benefits, getting an attachment of earnings (this means deductions are taken directly from earnings by an employer and passed to the council) or using enforcement agents. The council can decide which recovery method to use but it can only use one method for one liability order at one time.

What happened

14. I have summarised below some key events leading to Ms X’s complaint. While I have considered everything submitted, this is not intended to be a detailed account of what took place.
15. In July 2012, the Council sent Ms X a council tax bill.
16. As the Council did not receive payment, it sent Ms X a reminder notice in September 2012.
17. Ms X did not make payment but called the Council at the end of the month to explain she had now moved away. The Council asked Ms X to contact it with her forwarding address once she was in a new property and told her the reminder notice would remain on her account. The Council followed this up by emailing Ms X to ask for a new contact address.
18. As Ms X did not provide a forwarding address, in November 2012, the Council issued another reminder notice to the property where the council tax was incurred. It then issued a summons in December 2012. The Council’s notes do not show any records of receiving these returned.
19. The Council received a liability order for the debt in January 2013 and passed the debt to enforcement agents to complete recovery action. Following unsuccessful previous attempts, enforcement agents were able to trace and contact Ms X in 2024.
20. Ms X contacted the Council in 2024 to question the debt and said it would now be statute barred. Ms X also questioned the validity of the liability order.

Analysis

21. Ms X has said she was not aware of the council tax debt and the Council pursued this by writing to her at addresses she did not live at. The Council’s records show Ms X was aware of the council tax debt prior to her moving in September 2012 and the Council requested information about a forwarding address but did not receive this. The Council wrote to Ms X at her last known address and also used external enforcement agents to try to trace her current address. I do not find the Council at fault here.
22. The law says a council can serve a summons if council tax remains unpaid after it has issued a reminder. The Council issued reminders to Ms X but the council tax arrears remained unpaid, so it was entitled to serve a summons, and I do not find it at fault here.
23. Once the court issued liability orders, the Council was entitled to pass the debt on to enforcement agents. The Council has followed the correct process in its pursuit of Ms X’s council tax arrears and so I do not find it at fault here.
24. Ms X has said the council tax debt would now be statute barred, however the Council obtained a liability order in January 2013, so there is no time limit for it to take recovery action. I do not find the Council at fault.

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Decision

25. I do not find the Council at fault and I have completed my investigation.

Investigator’s decision on behalf of the Ombudsman

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman