Recommendation 1

The Council Tax (Administration and Enforcement) Regulations 1992 requires the year’s unpaid council tax balance to become payable in certain circumstances. This provision, and the speed with which it is applied, can be the catalyst for someone’s debts to quickly escalate. It is not clear, however, how much discretion local authorities have to agree repayment plans that spread the value of the unpaid balance over the rest of the year. The council tax collection best practice guidance, published by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, strongly implies that local authorities do not have to demand immediate payment in full, but evidence from stakeholders suggests that this message is not getting through.