Last month I received a notice of a claim against me for £850. I immediately sent off the included form admitting to the full amount and offering £40/m which would have seen it paid off in under two years. The next contact I've received is today, stating that the claimant has objected to rate of payment offered and has issued a judgement against me demanding £1025 (including interest and costs) by instalments of £100. £100/m is going to be a huge stretch for me at the moment. The other factor is that I've just taken a new job that starts in three weeks and I was going to be applying for a flat on Monday morning. A CCJ is likely to obliterate any chance of that being successful. Is there anything I can do?

I'm self employed and I don't own my own home. So you're saying that seeing as I accept the liability, there's nothing much I can do until the council get in touch after the court date?

Good morning. It's my own fault really, I fell behind on my council tax (by two payments) and have received a summons for the full amount plus £58 in costs. The full amount is over £1k and not something I'm able to cover in one go. I have no dispute about the costs, it's my fault and I need to pay them, but want I want to avoid is having bailiffs knocking on my door with a liability order, attempting to intimidate my family, adding their own costs etc. etc. I've yet to speak to the council, as I'm unsure what their stance is likely to be. Essentially, I'd just like a little advice on how I should handle it with the council before going any further. Any help/advice would be much appreciated!