Rossendales.Can someone help me please?

[LavenderRose]

Sugarbabes47 my heart goes out to you. What callous ppl they are. You do come under the vulnerable persons group with your bereavement and also you DO NOT have to have any dealings with the bailiffs whatsoever. They will simply give your account back to the council if they do not get any money from you. I would just pay the council and not a penny to the bailiffs not even their ridiculous charges. I am in the same predicament with a bailiff who called at my door, gave me two days to pay £459 or he would hand my case to the police and i would be arrested and put in prison. I am a single mother so I come in the vulnerable group, he has overcharged me so I have lodged a complaint against him to the council. And he threatened me with imprisonment which he has no authority to do so. I sent a letter for a breakddown of my charges and screen dumps of my account and got a letter back saying my case has now gone back to the council and all correspondence has to go to them from now on. Er I dont think so! I have sent a letter to the council to complain about his conduct so they are investigating it and waiting for an explanation from the bailiff about his methods of collecting arrears. I sent a 2nd letter to the bailiffs stating that if I didnt receive a breakdown of my charges I will complain in the form of a form 4 and see him in court in front of a judge for fraud, breach of code of conduct and threats. I have also asked the council which enforecement agency he is registered with and they have told me so they are getting a complaint too. I suggest you write to the council and ask which enforcement agency this bailiff is registered with which if its rossendales (same as me) it may be that they are all registered with the same one, they sent me the address and the email address. When you get it send a complaint. If a bailiff does come ignore him and he will go away. Id write to the council and give them 14 days to find your missing account that shows its paid or you will be writing to the local ombudsman, that will make them shift off their backsides. The council wanted £60 a month off me which I could not afford. I stated I am not refusing to pay just cant without incurring more hardship and sent £8 a week and have been doing so for the last 3 weeks. They have cashed each cheque and even sent me a payment card to send with the cheque so that they can stamp it and send it back. The arrears department in the councils are paid on a commission basis and are not interested in circumstances but just making their commission. They cannot though refuse any payment. I hope all this makes sense and I will post any more replies I do get. I am now going to write my complaint to the enforcement agency who will investigate my complaint. If I have not received my breakdown of charges by next Wednesday my form 4 will be in the post. This bailiff is going to wish he had never met me.lol I hope this is some comfort to you and please do trust the advice from the people on this site as they are brilliant. I am only advising from my own experience and I am not a qualifed adviser or expert but have done all my fighting back from the advise from this site and its working. I wish you all the best and I hope this gives you peace of mind.

 

LavenderRose x

[Sugarbabe47]

Hi Lavenderrose

Many many thanks for that post. Now I don't feel totally alone-no disrespect for all that have/are helping me on this site.

I am sending one further letter to my L/A next week with a copy to ombudsman as this is ridiculous. Being honest and scared when my ex left me I have just *believed* everything to be true, if that makes sense. Its only now that I have gained knowledge and wisdom from this site that I have realised how the L/A and bailiff company have treated me.

During the time from when my ex left to last year all I have done is worked and worked and worked-because of these two reasons.

1) I had 2 not 1 attachment of earning slapped on me,resulting in me having to work 80 PLUS hours a week to live and support 2 children.

2) I ALSO had to pay the bailiff company a ridiculous amount per week.

This was going on whilst I had personal tragedies in my life. Time off work = no money. It all has a knock on effect. Bottom line financially is looking into becoming bankrupt at this present time.

I am not looking for a sympathy vote just truth!

Armed with knowledge from here I am not going to work myself into an early grave for no-one! It's just sometimes it does get to me, and sometimes I get weary with it all and wonder where the basics have gone, like communication!!!

I have been told that the bailiffs have sent my case back to the L/A and agreed - overcharged my accounts.

(Still getting bailiff letters,threats!)

Now I am being told that the L/A need information from that I have already supplied YEARS ago!!!! (which I have copies for!) L/A agreed monies missing from my attatchment of earnings, plus I have been told that I was entitled to 25% discount for over 6 years!!

And L/A know this case to be in dispute!! so why are they not calling off their bailiffs??

So you can see I am upset,frustrated and sometimes down right angry that this is not being rectified and I sometimes lose the fight to carry this through.

So LavenderRose reading your post has helped me and I look forward to reading your progress. Thanks Sugar x x

Edited September 6, 2008 by Sugarbabe47
wrong wording

[Fair-Parking]

Bankruptcy? The CAB said what.................?

 

Your creditors can't do any worse than make you bankrupt. Why make it easy for them?

 

If they see any profit your bankruptcy, they'll do it anyway. And then they can pay the fees you can't afford.

 

If they don't see any profit, they'll go away, knowing that it isn't possible to get blood out of a stone.

 

You can only gain by not making yourself bankrupt - so I repeat - Why make it easy for them?

Edited September 7, 2008 by Fair-Parking

[LavenderRose]

If you have it in writing that the bailiffs have overcharged you im sure you can put them in front of a judge for fraud. I would read stickys threads. He has some cracking letters you could use. Dont be afraid of these people they are bullies and have no right to intimidate you just to get their commission. Any letters you still get from the bailiffs keep them as proof of harrassment and send one of stickys letters to the council offering them what you can afford stating (and this is important you add this) that you are by no means refusing to pay your council tax but cannot pay the amount they are demanding and only wish to pay an amount you can afford without causing further hardship and defaulting on other accounts) then offer them an amount you can afford, pay it and stick to it. I understand why you have been advised not to go bankrupt. It puts your credit in the bin for 6 or 7 years and means you wouldnt get credit again for a long time. Im sure there is an option and I cant remember what its called where you write to the courts for this whatever its called and fill out a form giving all your debts. The only one you cant add is c.tax. You offer the courts a monthly amount that you can afford and they write to all your debtors and stop interest being added. The payments you send the court they share out to your creditors until the debts are paid. They cant write to you for payment, add any more interest or take you to court while you have this. I think its some sort of injunction. I dont know what anyone else thinks as im unsure on this but maybe martin3030 or someone knows what im on about and can give you more info. Also bailiffs are not allowed to call at silly oclock so you get some sleep you deserve it.

 

All the best and keep your chin up x

 

LavenderRose

[Sugarbabe47]

Hi

LavenderRose - I have already written letters from here to bailiff and L/A,(kept all copies!) my next step is this final letter to the L/A and a complaint to Ombudsman which I am sending this week. I also know the court thingy you mentioned, Administration Order. However as I do not have a CCJ I can't go down that route!! It's a vicious circle sometimes.

 

Fairparking - When I first attended CAB in 2003,with what me ex had left me, my outcome was more than my income, I had to work 80+ hrs a week to survive! At that time I had huge rent arrears and CAB advised me then to not go bankrupt in case I lost my home. So I have stuggled on and on and this is where I am at now. CAB are still advising me to declare bankrupcy - my rent arrears are clear now, after years of hard work. So thats why I am considering bankrupcy.

Edited September 7, 2008 by Sugarbabe47
missed out a word!!! doh!

[Fair-Parking]

Don't!

 

'Why make it easy for them?' was the best advice ever given to me and came from a specialist insolvency solicitor. I took it and have had nearly 30 years to reflect on that advice. It can't believe that I ever considered making myself bankrupt. There is nothing to gain by it. The stigma will last for the rest of your life.

 

At the time, I tried to please all of the people all of the time and soon learned that creditors don't give a damn about anybody but themselves - not even other creditors.

 

So I stopped running about trying to please them and walked away. Played cricket, took my 2 year old to the local steam railway - and guess what? Having put the ball back into the court of all those threatening to do awful things - I opened the door for them to do so, but they didn't take up the opportunity. I gained peace of mind, which is the one thing all these people had worked very hard to relieve me of.

 

Whilst they imagined I was hopping about in misery and despair they simply tried to pile more on hoping that would be the best way to extract money which I hadn't got.

 

Once it dawned that the threats were no longer working, most went away within weeks, some with sympathetic farewells.

[Sugarbabe47]

Hi Fairparking

Thank you for that. Someone who can *see* where I am at! I have not gone ahead yet with the bankrupcy. I say yet as I am still researching and trying to take back control. At my time of life I don't want any more stress,worry,fear...I too am looking for my peace of mind.

[LavenderRose]

Well said Fair parking I couldnt agree more. I have in the past had creditors threatening me with court charges etc and in the end apart from almost having a nervous breakdown and losing weight to the points of looking like a stick insect I decided Sod You. You dont care about me and the fact I ended up on anti depressants so I sent them all £2 per week and guess what. They accepted it! It took me a lot longer to pay them all but I did and I am glad cause now im with someone who wont **** on me financially and we are looking to get a mortgage next year. If I had gone bankrupt I would have had no chance of that now. Whenever you feel down sugar come on here and everyone here will cheer you up and give you hope.

 

LavenderRose

 

There is a light at the end of the tunnel all you need is faith in yourself.

[Sugarbabe47]

Hi LavenderRose

Many thanks for your words - I have suffered serious health problems and I am sure my financial pressure hasn't helped. I am reading and reading and reading about bankrupcy - It is a rollercoaster all this, my head hurts at times!

Somedays I feel like giving up and find myself wondering what it would be like if I didn't wake up, somedays I get angry at how I have been duped by other human beings,including bailiffs L/A staff etc.

Its a vicious circle and I for one want and need to take back control of my life/mind/finances and I know Rome wasn't built in a day, but this situation is dragging on and on - OOOOOHHH...didn't mean to sound so self pitiful....sorry....

This site is fantastic.

 

Sugar x

[LavenderRose]

Oh Sugar dont ever not want to wake up hun as life is forever changing and nothing ever stays the same for long although some things might seem like they drag on forever. Your not the only one being duped by others so dont ever feel alone. Thats what this site is all about. Its not just for information and help but its for ppl to support each other in similar circumstances and each and every person here has had financial struggles and/or been ripped off. Keep posting here Sugar and we will all help you to find peace in your life and as for the bailiffs I wouldnt even give them a minutes thought. What a crummy job they have to get up each morning and be so callous to decent human beings. Their job description must include be disattached from human beings and have no emotions and you will be perfect for doing such a lousy job and then go home and sleep at night without remorse or guilt. YOU sugar and everyone here are different and You are a fighter or you wouldnt still be struggling on for a better life and future. You keep it up girl and only do what you feel is right for you. You will come out a winner in the end. I still have not had a breakdown of my charges so my complaint to the courts (form 4) will be posted tomorrow morning. I will not let this rest until justice is done and my charges are repaid. Take it easy Sugar.

 

LavenderRose x

[tomtubby]

It is CLEAR that the local authority have a acted in a terrible manner and for this reason you simply have to ensure that you put a complaint about this council to the Senior Investigator at the Local Government Ombudsman.

 

As bailiff's act as agents of the council, they remain in the Ombudsman's jurisdiction.

 

Last year over 1,000 complaints were made to the LGO and it is CLEAR from a digest of some of the cases that your's is very serious indeed.

[Sugarbabe47]

Hi

LavenderRose - Many thanks for the kind words, I know deep down I am a fighter else I wouldn't still be here after all I have endured! But, and its a small but, sometimes I wish my fight was over so I can live properly, eat properly, sleep properly - not much to ask for really in the grande scheme of things. I have had wonderful support on this site and Tomtubby has helped enormously with letters, I can't thank TT enough.

 

Tomtubby - Letter now sent to L/A - and thank you for all the help/advice and belief in my case.

 

My letter of compaint has been sent to L/A - next step going to Ombudsman. Will keep you all informed of my progress. I can't thank people enough on this site for all the support and help at a time when I thought I was alone going through this! I wish I had found this site a couple of years ago, but then I didn't have Internet...:roll:so I can see light at the end of the long, dark tunnel and its not been easy and I do not expect it to be an easy ride out the other end, but now I am taking back control of my entire life.

[LavenderRose]

Good for you Sugar and TT`s right. You need to send this one to the Ombudsman, they will sort it out. Ive finally had a letter back from the bailiffs and a breakdown of charges. The bailiff is denying he ever said he would hand my case over to the police who will arrest me and put me in prison if I didnt pay in full in two days and they believe him!! Also ive got 9 pages of breakdown of visits etc. If these are screen dumps of my account im the queen mary!!! apparently he paid a 2nd visit and I spoke to him from the window?? I have never spoken to a bailiff from a window. I cant believe the list of lies. Oh and my front door is yellow? I am so mad I cant reply yet so I am going for a walk with my lovely staffy to calm down and then come back in here. Any help would be appreciated. Apart from having 4 ppl in the hallway who all heard him plain as day say it how can I prove him wrong as they were my family and a family friend. Wasnt expecting pages of verbal diahorrhea.

[LavenderRose]

Hiya Sugarbabes just wondering how you have got on so far. Im writing back to the bailiffs with a definate no your reply is not satisfactory as you hoped. I cant believe the lies that have been told. I am complaining to his enforcement association and definately sending my form 4 complaint.Im also waiting for some advice on what to put in my letter.

Hope your ok and that things have improved for you

 

LavenderRose

[Sugarbabe47]

Hi all , LavenderRose

Sorry not been on a while but I have been moving my daughter to her first new flat!!!(even sorted her Council Tax Bill out for her!!) Update on my situation, I have not had a response from L/A and the deadline for them to reply or indeed sort my case out was 19th September, well I have not heard from them (suprise - suprise ) I telephoned them this morning and was told that *there is a 2 week back log*

Well not my problem, I have danced their dance for 7 long years and I know its only 2 weeks, but I did threaten with Ombudsman and so I am writing and posting letter of complaint today!! (AS PER PROMISE!)

Hopefully something will be done , we can hope eh?

Will keep you informed.

Yes lies are something that really niggles me, but in the end the truth always comes out, keep going LavenderRose.

Thanks for all the help in here guys:)

[Sugarbabe47]

Hi

I have tried to write a letter of complaint to LGO, but can't seem to!!

Could someone please help me - I do not know what to write for maximum impact. Any help appreciated. Thank you.

Sugar x

[Sugarbabe47]

Hello???

Help needed with a letter.

thank you.

Sugar:confused:

[Sugarbabe47]

Hello....Please anyone???

[palomino]

I've never done this myself, however I would approach it something like this -

 

Dear Sirs,

 

I wish to lodge a formal complaint about .

 

The background to my complaint is as follows : .

 

My complaint is :

 

Yours faithfully,

 

 

Have a go yourself and then put it up here. We can give it a once over and possibly help improve it for your 'maximum impact'. Stay away from emotive words - keep it plain and dignified, and keep things logical so everyone can understand it.

[LavenderRose]

Hiya Sugarbabe, glad your still fighting on. Sticky has some good templates and one for complaining to the ombudsman but for something else. You could either tweak it to suit your case or maybe ask him to write you one. His letters are brilliant.

 

Take Care

LavenderRose x

[Sugarbabe47]

hi all. Could someone give this letter the once over and let me know if this is ok to send the LGO??? I am concerned that it may be too strong? Any feed back would be great. Thanks guys n girls.

 

Dear Sir

I have been advised to write to you in connection with an issue that I have with my Local Authority – xxxxxxCouncil. I consider that the treatment that I have received has been dilatory, incompetent and totally unacceptable to the point of negligent. I am enclosing a copy of a letter dated 12 September 2008 to Mr XXX– Revenues Manager at XXXXX Council which clearly sets out my long standing concerns/grievances with the Council over arrears of Council Tax. To clarify the position I am also enclosing a brief but comprehensive history of events as they occurred over the period of the last 8 years.

As you can see, through no fault of my own making, I have endeavoured and at times struggled to pay off the arrears. It is my understanding that since 2001/2 when my ex husband – Mr X X XXX finally vacated the matrimonial home I should have been entitled to a single person’s council tax rebate which despite the fact that I have regularly updated the Council as to changing personal circumstances, they do not appear to have taken in to account. Consequently it would appear that not only has my Council Tax been incorrectly assessed over a number of years but that the extent of the arrears that have accrued and for which I am allegedly liable, are proportionally much larger than they should be.

The Council have also appointed Rossendales (Bailiffs) to recover the “questionable” arrears; however “X XXXXX ” who has acted on my behalf with Rossendales have ascertained and confirmed that illegal charges and illegal levies have been made against me. I consider that the practices and methods Rossendales have employed to extract payment have been unscrupulous and totally unprofessional. I have suffered continual harassment and threats from the bailiffs all of which could have been avoided had it not been for the failure of XXXXXX Council to thoroughly investigate the issues that I had raised with them on numerous occasions before they took the decision to employ this company. In addition I am now receiving medication for depression as a direct result of the stress and constant worry that has been inflicted upon me.

I hold the Council personally responsible for the fact that I have now no alternative other than to instigate Bankruptcy proceedings a situation that I find both repugnant and unwarranted.

Yours sincerely

[palomino]

Try this -

 

Dear Sirs

 

I am writing to complain about Local Authority – xxxxxxCouncil and the manner in which they have handled my Council Tax liabilities and arrears.

 

I have enclosed a copy of a letter dated 12 September 2008 to Mr XXX– Revenues Manager at XXXXX Council which clearly sets out my long standing concerns/grievances with the Council over arrears of Council Tax. To clarify the position I am also enclosing a brief but comprehensive history of events as they occurred over the period of the last 8 years.

 

As you can see, through no fault of my own making, I have endeavoured and at times struggled to pay off the arrears. It is my understanding that since 2001/2 when my ex husband – Mr X X XXX finally vacated the matrimonial home I should have been entitled to a single person’s council tax rebate which despite the fact that I have regularly updated the Council as to changing personal circumstances, they do not appear to have taken in to account. Consequently it would appear that not only has my Council Tax been incorrectly assessed over a number of years but that the extent of the arrears that have accrued and for which I am allegedly liable, are proportionally much larger than they should be.

 

The Council have also appointed Rossendales (Bailiffs) to recover the “questionable” arrears, however “X XXXXX ” who has acted on my behalf with Rossendales have ascertained and confirmed that illegal charges and illegal levies have been made against me. I consider that the practices and methods Rossendales have employed to extract payment have been unscrupulous and totally unprofessional. I have suffered continual harassment and threats from the bailiffs all of which could have been avoided had it not been for the failure of XXXXXX Council to thoroughly investigate the issues that I had raised with them on numerous occasions before they took the decision to employ this company. In addition I am now receiving medication for depression as a direct result of the stress and constant worry that has been inflicted upon me.

 

I consider that the treatment that I have received has been dilatory, incompetent and negligent to the point of being vindictive.

Yours sincerely

 

I've moved things round a bit and left out the bit about bankruptcy. While that is significant it isn't of interest to the LGO.

 

I've left it in but you might like to remove all the bits about the bailiffs. Again this is a significant issue, but not for the LGO who is only interested in the Council and its misdemeanours.

 

Just my penny's worth. Hope it helps.

[Sugarbabe47]

Thanks Palomino. I will leave it in about the bailiffs, but I also wanted the LGO to know that I feel the L/A have forced my hand to bankrupcy - after 2 att. of earnings in force and paying bailiffs AND paying C/Tax - ALL at the same time, over a 2 year period, forcing me to work 80 plus hours a week!!! All my pay was going to one L/A - resulting in me falling behind with other bills/debts!!!

[palomino]

Fairy nuff.

 

How about this to replace the last sentence -

 

I have tried at all times to be honest and conscientious in my dealings with the Council however the treatment I have have received has been dilatory, unsympathetic, negligent and incompetent to the point of being vindictive. I have been working 80 hours per week for the last two years in an effort to pay off all my bills however the Council's efforts have claimed a disproportionate amount of my income making me fall behind with other commitments. I have now reached the point where I am preparing my petition for bankruptcy.

[Sugarbabe47]

Thanks for that Palomino.

 

Letter sent today - lets see what sort of response I get, if any!!!

 

I will keep you all updated.

 

I am filling in my paperwork now for my bankrupcy:eek:...scary stuff!!! Go to court on November 12th.......sighing.....