If you are struggling to pay your council tax, use this guide to understand:
- why council tax arrears are a priority debt;
- what action a council can take if you have a council tax debt;
- how to deal with council tax bailiffs; and
- how to ask the council for an affordable payment plan for your debt.
Our service is always free. If you have any questions or need advice, call us on 0808 808 4000.
Why is council tax a priority debt?
The law gives different creditors different ways of getting their money back. Priority creditors have more power to get you to pay. This is why priority debts are more important than other debts.
As the council has strong powers to make you pay, council tax arrears are a priority debt. This means you should pay your council tax debt before paying non-priority debts, such as credit cards or unsecured loans.
This guide explains how your local council may try to collect any non-payment of council tax from you.
Who pays what?
A council tax bill is based on the value of a property and how many adults live in it. Several factors affect who is liable to pay the bill, including the occupation rights of the adults who live in the property. Only people age 18 and over can be liable.
If you are liable for the bill and live with your spouse or partner, usually you will both be responsible for paying all of the bill. This is known as ‘joint and several liability’. If more than one person is named on the bill, such as joint tenants, they will be jointly and severally liable.
Sometimes, you can be liable for the bill even if you do not live in the property, for example, because a property you own is empty, or is classed as a house of multiple occupation (HMO).
You cannot be asked to pay if you are not named on the bill. However, if the council thinks you are liable, they can issue another bill to add your name.
If you are not sure who is liable for the bill, contact us for advice.
Council tax reductions, discounts and discretionary help
Depending on your circumstances, you may be entitled to a reduction, a discount or discretionary help with your council tax bill. This could mean that you do not have to pay all, or part, of your bill.
We have listed some of the help that may be available. For more information and to make an application, contact your council.
Reductions
- Council Tax Reduction (also known as Council Tax Support) – If you are on a low income, you may be entitled to Council Tax Reduction. Each council can create their own scheme. The rules and amount of reduction available can vary from council to council.
- Disability Band Reduction Scheme – You may get a reduction to your bill if someone living in your home has a disability, and because of this you are living in a property that is larger than you would otherwise need.
- Second Adult Rebate – If you live in England, you may be able to claim this rebate if you share your home with another adult who:
- is on a low income;
- is not liable to pay the council tax bill; and
- does not pay rent to you.
- You cannot get Second Adult Reduction and Council Tax Reduction at the same time.
Discounts
- Single person’s discount – You may get a 25% discount to your bill if you are the only adult in your home, or you share it only with people who are not counted for council tax purposes, such as a full-time student. See GOV.UK for information about who is not counted for council tax.
- If all residents, including yourself, are not counted for council tax purposes, you may get a 50% discount to your bill.
- Discounts for people with severe mental impairment – You may get a reduction to your bill if someone living in your home has a severe mental impairment and is entitled to certain benefits.
- Empty property discount – Each council can decide whether to offer a council tax discount for an empty property. Check with your local council. If your property has been empty for at least one year, also see the Long term empty and second home premiums section.
Discretionary help
- Councils have the discretion to reduce your council tax bill (or previous debt) in part or in full. They can consider making a discretionary reduction if you are liable for the council tax and experiencing exceptional circumstances, such as severe financial hardship. If you think you may be eligible, contact us for advice.
Long term empty and second home premiums
Councils can charge you a higher amount of council tax than usual by adding an extra premium to your bill if your property:
- has been empty and unfurnished for at least one year (a long-term empty property); or
- is furnished, but only occupied from time to time (for example, a second home).
Each council can decide whether to apply these premiums to properties in its area.
In England, the maximum premium a council can add for a long-term empty property will depend on how many years the property has been empty. The maximum premium it can add for a second home is 100% of the council tax bill.
In Wales, a council can add a maximum premium of 300% of the council tax bill for a long-term empty property or a second home.
If your council has added a premium to your council tax bill, check whether you are entitled to an exemption.
Falling behind with payments
Many people pay their council tax bill by instalments, and the bill shows when the payments are due.
If you miss a council tax payment, the council will send you a reminder notice. This will tell you which instalments you have missed and give you seven days to pay them (plus any other instalment that becomes due during this time). If you do not do so, you will lose your right to pay the bill by instalments. After a further seven days, your whole years’ council tax will become due.
- If you do not pay within the time given, the council can ask the court to make a liability order against you. See the next section, Council tax liability order.
- If you pay within the time given, you keep your right to pay the bill by instalments.
However, if the council has already sent you two reminder notices for the same years’ bill, the whole year’s bill will become due if you fall behind with another instalment for that year. The council will need to send you a final notice before they can ask the court to make a liability order against you.
If you cannot afford to clear your missed payments within the time given, try to make a payment arrangement with the council. See the How to make an offer section.
Council tax liability order
A council tax liability order is a type of court order. It says you owe council tax but have not paid it. The council can ask the magistrates’ court to make a liability order if you have unpaid council tax. A liability order can be made against:
- you if you are named in the bill; or
- you and another person if that person is also named in the bill.
If you are struggling to pay your council tax, don’t just stop paying. Contact your council to explain your situation. They may agree a new payment plan with you. If you act quickly, the council may not apply for a liability order.
Tell the council you have applied for help
If you have applied for help with your council tax bill, make sure the council is aware of this. They may be willing to wait until your claim is dealt with before applying for the liability order.
The council should not apply for a liability order if it has been more than six years from the date your debt became due (when the council first sent a bill to you for this council tax debt).
Once the council has obtained a liability order, there is no time limit for enforcing it. However, if the council took a long time to get the liability order, or to ask you to pay, you could complain. Contact us for advice.
What a liability order allows the council to do
If the council gets a liability order and you do not pay the amount owed, the council can make an information request and use further action against you.
An information request is where the council asks you to give them certain information. See the Information request section. The council may make an information request to help them decide what further action to use to recover the debt from you.
Further action the council can take
Further action is called ‘enforcement action’ and can include:
- using bailiffs to try to take your goods;
- making deductions from earnings;
- making deductions from benefits;
- asking for a charging order to secure the debt on a property you own;
- asking the court to make you bankrupt; and
- asking the court to send you to prison (England only).
Most councils prefer to use bailiffs or deductions from earnings to try to recover unpaid council tax. However, a council can only use one type of enforcement action at a time for each liability order they have in your name. In later sections of this guide, we describe each type of council tax arrears enforcement action in more detail.
If action is being taken against you that is not described in this guide, or you have received paperwork you do not understand, contact us for advice.
Breathing space
If you need time to get debt advice and find a debt solution, you may want to consider applying for breathing space.
Breathing space will stop most types of enforcement and also stop most creditors applying interest and charges for 60 days.
To find out more, see our Breathing space guide.
Information request
The council must make the request in writing, and can ask you to tell them:
- the name and address of your employer, and your work identity number if you have one;
- about your earnings and any other income you get;
- information about certain deductions that are taken from your pay, such as income tax, pension contributions or attachment of earnings orders; and
- whether anyone else is also liable for the debt.
You have 14 days to give the council these details. It is a criminal offence not to respond or to provide false information. If you are unable to provide the information requested, contact us for advice
How to make an offer
You can ask the council for a repayment plan for your council tax arrears at any time before they use enforcement action. If they agree, it could stop further action from happening.
- First work out how much you can offer to pay towards your council tax arrears each month. To do this, you will need to complete a budget. You can use My Money Steps to work out your budget.
- Then contact the council to make your repayment plan offer, and give them a copy of your budget to show that your offer is realistic.
- Start making your payments straight away.
Usually, the council will want you to pay your arrears within the current council tax year. Sometimes, they may refuse your repayment plan offer. If this happens, keep making the payments you have offered. This will show that your offer is affordable and begin to reduce your arrears. Ask the council to reconsider your offer and take your financial circumstances into account.
Each time you make a payment, include the council tax reference number, and the liability order number if you have one. If you have council tax arrears for more than one year, tell the council which council tax year your payment is for. If you do not, they may allocate all of your payments to the current year’s bill. This could lead to unnecessary enforcement action on your older debt.
Check for reductions, discounts or discretionary help
Remember to check whether you are entitled to any help with your council tax bill. See the earlier section, Council tax reductions, discounts and discretionary help.
If you have applied for a reduction or discount to your bill and are still waiting for a decision, tell the council when you make your payment offer.
Council tax bailiffs
Bailiffs are also commonly known as ‘enforcement agents’. In this guide we use the term bailiffs.
Council tax is usually collected by a private firm of bailiffs on behalf of your local council. They try to take your goods away and sell them, usually at auction, to raise money to pay the debt. Once the council has obtained a liability order against you, they can instruct bailiffs. The process bailiffs have to follow is called ‘taking control of goods’.
Council tax bailiffs must be ‘certificated’. This means that they must have a certificate from the County Court allowing them to act as a bailiff. You can check if a bailiff has a current certificate by searching the Certificated Bailiff Register at https://certificatedbailiffs.justice.gov.uk/.
Bailiffs should give you seven clear days’ notice that they are due to visit you. This is sometimes known as an ‘enforcement notice’. ‘Clear days’ do not include Sundays, Christmas Day or bank holidays.
Bailiffs may ask you to agree to make a ‘virtual’ or non-entry controlled goods agreement (CGA) when they initially contact you by telephone or letter, rather than coming to visit your property to take control of goods.
If you are considering whether to agree to making a virtual CGA, contact us for advice
Do I have to let the bailiffs in?
You do not have to let the bailiffs into your home. Council tax bailiffs are only allowed to force their way into your home if all three of the following points apply.
- They have taken control of your goods inside your home.
- If you made a controlled goods agreement (CGA) with the bailiff, you have broken the CGA by missing at least one payment.
- They have given you two clear days’ notice that they are coming to inspect or take these goods.
Politely but firmly refuse to let the bailiffs in, without opening the door to them. Offer what you can afford to pay. If the bailiffs accept your offer, ask them to return to their car and go out and pay them. Make sure you get a receipt.
If you have not let the bailiffs in before, keep your doors locked. A bailiff is allowed to come into your property through an unlocked door, even if you are not in at the time. Although bailiffs should not enter through a window, it is a good idea to keep windows closed.
Bailiffs can take control of goods outside your home, so if you have a vehicle, keep it in a locked garage. If you park the vehicle on your drive, the bailiffs could clamp it.
You could park the vehicle away from your property, but if you park it on a public road and bailiffs find it, they could clamp and possibly remove it. Contact us for advice.
What if the bailiffs have already been inside my home?
If you have already let a council tax bailiff into your home, it is important to bear in mind the following points.
Bailiffs will not usually take away goods on their first visit.
They may ask you to sign a ‘controlled goods agreement’. This allows you to keep using the items listed on the agreement. However, if you break the terms of the controlled goods agreement, the bailiff can return and take the goods by breaking in if necessary. They should give you two clear days’ notice before doing this. If you don’t sign the agreement, the bailiff may remove the goods straight away or lock up the goods on your premises.
Bailiffs may not be able to take goods that are worth more than you actually owe. If they threaten to do this, contact us for advice.
Council tax bailiffs should not take:
- clothing, bedding, furniture and basic household items (such as a refrigerator or a cooker or microwave) that are necessary for the basic domestic needs of you and your family;
- tools, books, telephones, computers, vehicles and other items of equipment that are necessary for use personally in your job, business or education (up to a value of £1,350); and
- items you or someone else is physically using where taking the goods is likely to lead to a breach of the peace.
This is not a complete list of the goods that bailiffs should not take. If you are unsure whether an item is exempt or not, contact us for advice.
If bailiffs take control of goods that are protected, you can make a court claim for the goods to be returned. Contact us for advice.
Can bailiffs take goods belonging to someone else?
The bailiff can only take goods belonging to the person (or people) named on the liability order. They should not take goods that belong to other people, including rented goods. If they threaten to do this, explain that the goods do not belong to you. Show a receipt or credit agreement as proof. If the owner hasn’t got a receipt, they can provide a sworn statement called a ‘statutory declaration’ instead. Contact us for advice.
If a bailiff takes good belonging to a third party, the third party can write to the bailiff to show that they own the goods and that they should not have been taken into control. The bailiff should then pass this onto the creditor. The creditor will decide whether to accept or reject the third party’s claim.
If the creditor rejects the claim, the third party can apply to court to get the goods back. However, they will need to pay the court a deposit. The size of the deposit depends on the value of the goods that have been taken. Contact us for advice.
Bailiffs can take goods that are jointly owned by you and your partner, but if you are the only person named on the liability order, they are only entitled to your share of the goods.
Can bailiffs take goods on hire purchase or conditional sale?
There are different legal views about whether council tax bailiffs can take control of goods on hire purchase or conditional sale agreements. If a bailiff threatens this, contact us for advice.
What if there are no goods to take?
If the council tax bailiffs come into your home, they may decide that your goods are not worth enough to cover the cost of them coming with a van to remove and sell them. If this is the case, the bailiff may return at a later date to try and take control of your goods. They have 12 months from the date of the enforcement notice to take control of your goods. If you agree instalments on the debt with the bailiff and you do not pay, the 12 months will not start until the arrangement has been broken.
A bailiff should only take enough goods to cover the debt after they are sold. They should not take goods that are worth a lot more than you actually owe unless there is only one item that the bailiff thinks is worth taking, such as a car.
What if I hide things away?
If the council tax bailiffs haven’t yet been in and you hide things by taking them somewhere else, the bailiffs may apply to court for permission to break into the place where you have put the goods. If the bailiffs have already been in and taken control of your goods, you are committing an offence if you remove goods that they have said they will take.
Bailiff procedures
If the bailiffs are collecting council tax arrears, there are certain procedures that they have to follow.
They must have identification and written authorisation from the council with them when they call. They should show you this if you ask.
Under the law, bailiffs have to leave you paperwork explaining what they intend to do or what they have done. For example, bailiffs should give you notice telling you:
- that they intend to visit you;
- when they have taken control of your goods; and
- when they intend to re-enter your premises after a previous entry.
There are strict rules about the information this paperwork must contain. If the bailiffs do not give you the correct paperwork, you can complain or consider taking legal action against them. Contact us for advice.
What fees can the council tax bailiffs charge you?
Council tax bailiffs can charge you the following fees if they start the type of action described.
- £75 for being instructed by the creditor, carrying out initial checks, investigations and receiving payments.
- £235 to cover visiting and entering premises and taking control of your goods.
- £110 to cover attending to remove your goods for sale, valuing them and arranging for them to be sold.
- The cost of storing goods which the bailiff has removed.
- The cost of hiring a locksmith, if one is needed.
If your debt is over £1,500 or if your goods are sold at auction, further fees can be charged. Contact us for advice.
The bailiffs should give you information about how much you owe before and after they visit you. If you think they have charged you too much, contact us for advice. You may be able to challenge charges through the County Court.
How do I stop the bailiffs?
- Try to make an arrangement to pay the debt back at a rate you can afford. Send the council tax bailiffs a letter with your budget and ask them to accept regular payments.
- It is usually easier to get the bailiffs to accept your offer if they have never been into your home or listed any of your goods to sell, such as your car. Even if the bailiffs refuse your offer, start making the payments. The bailiffs will add these to your account and it shows you are willing to pay. Always get a receipt for any money you pay.
- If a bailiff returns your payment to you, contact the council. Explain what has happened and ask the council to accept the payment.
- If you have made regular payments to your council tax debt and can show that you are paying the arrears off, you could ask the council to take the account back from the bailiffs. Unless the council agree to this, the bailiffs can still collect the debt.
- If you are in a vulnerable situation, for example, you are unwell, let the council know. Ask the council if they have a vulnerability policy, as they may need to be more flexible in how they ask you to pay the debt.
- It is very important to make an arrangement to pay the council if your account has gone back to them. If you do not, they may try other ways of recovering the debt, such as taking money out of your wages or your benefits.
Deductions from earnings
This allows the council to ask your employer to take regular deductions from your wages to repay your council tax debt. It is called an ‘attachment of earnings order’.
The deductions are made from your ‘net income’, and the amount taken from your wages depends on how much you earn. ‘Net income’ means the income you have left after your employer has taken off your income tax, National Insurance and certain pension scheme payments.
Some employers may be annoyed at the inconvenience of making deductions from your wages. Also, in some jobs, being in debt can be a disciplinary offence. For example, if your job involves handling money, a deduction from earnings could put your job at risk. Check your contract of employment.
As this type of enforcement deals with debt recovery through wages, it cannot be used if you are self-employed.
Deductions from net monthly income in England
This table shows the income deduction rates that apply to attachment of earnings orders made in England on or after 1 April 2007.
| Net monthly earnings | Deduction rate (%) |
|---|---|
| £0 – £300 | 0 |
| £300.01 – £550 | 3 |
| £550.01 – £740 | 5 |
| £740.01 – £900 | 7 |
| £900.01 – £1,420 | 12 |
| £1,420.01 – £2,020 | 17 |
| £2,020.01 or more | 17 for first £2,020 and 50 for remainder |
Deductions from net monthly income in Wales
This table shows the income deduction rates that apply to attachment of earnings orders made in Wales on or after 1 April 2022.
| Net monthly earnings | Deduction rate (%) |
|---|---|
| £0 – £430 | 0 |
| £430.01 – £780 | 3 |
| 780.01 – £1,050 | 5 |
| £1,050.01 – £1,280 | 7 |
| £1,280.01 – £2,010 | 12 |
| £2,010.01 – £2,860 | 17 |
| £2,860.01 or more | 17 for first £2,860 and 50 for remainder |
The income deduction rates for attachment of earnings orders made in Wales between 1 April 2007 and 31 March 2022 are the same as those shown in the Deductions from net monthly income in England table.
What can I do about an attachment of earnings order?
You can ask the council if they will agree to discharge the attachment of earnings order and accept affordable payments from you directly. Although councils have the power to do this, some may be unwilling to agree to this type of request. It is important that you explain your situation fully to the council and include information about how the attachment of earnings order will affect you.
- If the deduction will create financial hardship, explain this to the council. Use your budget to show the council how much you can afford to pay towards your council tax arrears each month.
- If the attachment of earnings order could put your job at risk, you may want to use this as a negotiation tactic. Explain to the council that if they ask for a deduction from earnings, you may lose your job. If this happens, they will get less money.
What if I owe more than one year’s council tax?
Each council can have a maximum of two attachment of earnings orders in place against you at a time. This is the case even if you owe a council several years of council tax. If you are having deductions made for two attachment of earnings order at the same time and this is causing you hardship, contact your council and explain your situation. Ask the council if they will:
- consider making deductions for the orders consecutively, rather than at the same time; or
- agree to discharge the orders and accept affordable payments from your directly. Use your budget to work out how much you can afford to offer the council each month to pay towards your council tax arrears.
If you owe council tax to more than one council and are being threatened with more than two attachment of earnings orders at a time, contact us for advice.
Deductions from benefits
If you claim benefits, the council can apply for a third party deduction from those benefits once a liability order has been made. The benefits the council can deduct from are Income Support, Pension Credit, income-related or contribution-based Employment and Support Allowance, income-based or contribution-based Jobseeker’s Allowance or Universal Credit.
Charging orders
If the debt is for £1,000 or more, the council can apply to the County Court for a legal charge on the home on which you owe the council tax. The council can only do this if you own the property. This means the debt is ‘secured’ on your home like a mortgage, and so may put your home at risk. If the council threatens this, contact us for advice.
Bankruptcy
The council can try to make you bankrupt if the debt is £5,000 or more. This is more likely if you owe council tax bills for lots of different years as they can add these together. If the council has not considered other options, you may be able to complain to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO) if the council is in England or the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales (PSOW) if the council is in Wales. See Useful contacts at the end of this guide. You will need to complain to your local council first.
If the council threatens to make you bankrupt, contact us for advice.
Imprisonment for council tax
If you live in Wales
Councils in Wales cannot ask the court to send you to prison for not paying council tax.
If you live in England
If the council has used bailiffs and you still haven’t paid your council tax in full, councils in England can apply to the magistrates’ court to ask for you to be sent to prison. This is rare.
The court should not send you to prison if you cannot afford to pay. They should only do so if they think you have ‘deliberately refused’ or ‘neglected’ to pay when you could have done so.
The court must carry out a means enquiry before they decide to send you to prison. This is where they look at the reasons why you have not paid the council tax debt. The court will ask you questions about your situation, including your income, outgoings, debts and assets. Before the means enquiry, the court would need to issue a summons to attend the magistrates’ court, or issue an arrest warrant. If you receive a summons from the court, or have been threatened with prison, contact us for immediate advice.
Before you go to the hearing, get legal advice. Contact a local advice agency, a law centre or a solicitor. Most magistrates’ courts have a duty solicitor scheme that may be able to help you. Depending on your income, you may qualify under the Legal Help scheme for a solicitor to help you at the hearing. When you go to the hearing, take proof of your payments and copies of your letters to the bailiffs and the council where you have tried to negotiate an arrangement. Contact us for advice.
Normally the court will order you to pay an amount each month until you have paid the debt. If you do not pay this amount regularly, you will have to go to the court again and may be sent to prison for up to three months. If you find you can’t pay what the court has ordered, keep paying what you can afford and apply to the court to reduce the amount you have to pay. Contact us for advice.
In exceptional circumstances, the court may order the council tax debt you owe to be ‘written off’ so you do not have to pay the debt back.
Can council tax arrears be written off?
Although it is quite rare, council tax debts can be written off. This is because councils have the discretion to reduce your council tax bill for this year, or for a previous year. They can reduce your bill in part or in full (to zero). If the council agrees to reduce a council tax bill that you have fallen into arrears with, this will write off some or all of that year’s council tax debt. Councils can consider reducing your bill if you are liable for the council tax and are experiencing exceptional circumstances, such as severe financial hardship. If you think you may be eligible for your council tax debt to be written off, contact us for advice.
How do I complain?
Complaining about the council
If the council has not behaved properly or followed proper procedures, you can make a complaint. You must complain to your local council first. Do this in writing. Set out clearly why you feel they have acted unfairly and explain what you want them to do to put things right. Keep a copy of your letter.
If you do not hear back from the council after 12 weeks, or you are not happy with their response, then you may be able to ask the ombudsman to look at your complaint. You normally need to do this within 12 months of realising that that the council has done something wrong.
- If your complaint is about a council in England, contact the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO).
- If your complaint is about a council in Wales, contact the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales (PSOW).
See Useful contacts at the end of this guide.
The LGSCO and PSOW have the power to investigate your complaint and decide if they think the council has acted wrongly. If the LGSCO or PSOW finds that the council has done something wrong they could ask them to:
- apologise to you;
- take action or make a decision they should have done before;
- look at a decision again that they did not consider properly in the first place; and
- make a payment to cover your costs or losses.
You could also ask your local councillor to take up your complaint with the council.
Complaining about bailiffs
Council tax bailiffs must follow rules and behave properly when dealing with you. If they do not follow the proper procedures you can complain.
The Taking Control of Goods: National Standards are good practice guidelines that set out the rules and procedures bailiffs should follow. You can mention these in any bailiff complaint you make. You can find them on the GOV.UK website www.gov.uk or we can send you a copy.
Write a letter to the bailiff company. Set out clearly why you feel they have acted unfairly and explain what you want them to do to put things right. Keep a copy of your letter.
You can also complain to the council as the bailiffs are acting as their agent. If your complaint is not dealt with, you may be able to ask the ombudsman to look at your complaint. See the earlier section, Complaining about the council. However, the ombudsman may not be able to look at a complaint if you can ask the County Court to look at it instead; for example, if there is a dispute about who owns the goods.
Enforcement Conduct Board
The Enforcement Conduct Board (ECB) is an independent oversight body for the debt enforcement sector in England and Wales. You can complain to the ECB about accredited enforcement firms and their bailiffs if you have already tried complaining to the enforcement firm or bailiff directly. The ECB can only consider complaints about enforcement action that took place from 1 January 2025 onwards.
You can find details of ECB accredited member firms listed in the Accredited Firms Register.
Some councils use their own in-house Civil Enforcement Officers (CEOs) to collect council tax debt, while other councils use bailiffs who work for private enforcement firms. If your debt is being collected by a private enforcement firm rather than the council’s own in-house CEOs, you can complain to the ECB. The ECB will not handle complaints about a council’s in-house enforcement team, despite some being accredited by the ECB.
The ECB website has an online complaints form that you can use to make your complaint. If you aren’t able to use the online form you can download the form and email it to:
Complaints.Team@enforcementconductboard.org.
However, the ECB warn that emailing a complaint form to them can cause delays, so the online route is likely to be the best option if you are able to use it.
Complain to the court
You can complain to the court who granted the bailiff their certificate to be able to collect council tax. The court can cancel the bailiff’s certificate or suspend it on conditions, for example, that the bailiff is re-trained.
Remember, the bailiff must be certificated. You can check if a bailiff has a current certificate by searching the Certificated Bailiff Register at https://certificatedbailiffs.justice.gov.uk/. If you are dealing with a bailiff who is not certificated, contact us for advice.
You can also make a claim to the County Court for any loss you have suffered. You will need legal advice before doing this. Contact us for advice about finding the right legal advice for you.
We are here to help
At National Debtline we provide confidential debt advice, and our service is free. If you need more help with your council tax arrears or advice about what to do next, call us on 0808 808 4000. Remember, we are here to help.
Useful contacts
Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (England) Phone: 0300 061 0614 www.lgo.org.uk
Public Services Ombudsman for Wales Phone 0300 790 0203 www.ombudsman-wales.org.uk