Iam being taken to court (Magistrates) over unpaid Council tax.Will i then have a Criminal Record???Can i prevent this witout having to pay the full amount of owed money???
2007-05-27 00:17:53 · 9 answers · asked by Ally L 3 in Politics & Government ➔ Law & Ethics
contact your local Citizens Advice Bureau & ask for help.
avoiding paying it will only come back & bite you later on.
or you could contact the Council involved to negotiate what you can afford.
& yes it is likely you could end up with a CCJ against you, which will affect your life, later on.
Contact the CAB, let them try to sort it out for you.
2007-05-27 00:24:30 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 2⤋
No you will not have a criminal record, you will get a liability order. This will be followed up by enforcement. Bailiffs will then be empowered to seize property if you do not pay. I suggest you turn up at all costs and negotiate payment with the council representative. If you don't you may find the council office is unsympathetic after the fact.
Make sure you put together a statement of means and take it to show the magistrates! If your income justifies it, you can arrange instalments. The magistrates are your best bet for instalment arrangements.
If you don't turn up, it gets tricky from there on, as nobody seems in charge. The council will blame the baillifs, the baillifs will blame the magistrates.
You may still be able to get before a magistrate after the fact but don't count on it.
You only need to worry about the criminal side if you refuse to pay point blank, and baillifs are unable to recover sufficient goods to cover your bill and costs. Then you can be imprisoned for non-payment
2007-05-27 07:41:58 · answer #2 · answered by cognoscible 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
if you are found to be owing this money, then there will be proceesings to recover this money from you.
Owing money is a civil matter, and not criminal, therefore not a police matter as yet.
However, should you refuse to pay the monies outstanding, and continue to do so, then eventually a warrant may be issued for your arrest to recover council monies.
The whole point of being taken to court by any organsiation, is that they have tried and tried to recover this money legally, and you are not playing the game. So a court will rule on whether the monies you owe are legal, and that those recovering the monies have acted judtifiably, and correctly. Once the court makes a ruling, THEN BY LAW you must obey it. For courts have crown authority in judgements, which means they are acting in the interest of the law only, and are taking no sides in the matter.
If you ignore the courts, it is at this point that warrants will be issued for your arrest, for ignoring the ruling, which IS a CRIMINAL OFFENCE, and you will then obtain a criminal record.
my advice is to just pay it, or arrange with the court a reduced method of payment, if it is too much for you.
its not worth the hassle
2007-05-27 07:32:06 · answer #3 · answered by banjo 2 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Ive been were you are i will tell you what happened to me
i got a lawyer the courts said i could face 9mths behind bars
BUT what happened i ended up paying back the whole bill PLUS court cost and i ended up doing weeks and weeks of community service plus a criminal record
Good luck
Respect
shaz
2007-05-27 07:29:05 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
No. This is a civil matter and won't appear on your police record.
No way to stop it going to court though. Once you're summonsed the court will want to see you there unless you pay the demand in full. That's what happens in Leeds in any case.
2007-05-27 07:27:55 · answer #5 · answered by cliffers1 1 · 1⤊ 0⤋
It is more likely to be a record of a credit nature than criminal I hope you are prepared to deny you owe anything a court lawyer just may be able to help you .~~
2007-05-27 07:27:41 · answer #6 · answered by burning brightly 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
No you wont, but you will have to pay up, plus court charges. They normally accept instalments, but only payable over a short time. They will send in the baliffs, so you then get their charges on top, about £80. Poor you, I been their.
2007-05-27 07:27:28 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
I would check a solicitor, but this would appear, on the surface, to be a civil matter.
2007-05-27 07:28:23 · answer #8 · answered by Anthony F 6 · 1⤊ 1⤋
We all have to pay maybe you should have thought about court when you didn't pay it.
2007-05-27 07:26:50 · answer #9 · answered by des c 4 · 2⤊ 2⤋