Housing Communities and Local Government Committee (HCLG) – Council Tax Collection Inquiry Request for Evidence Submissions

Back in November the Housing Communities and Local Government Committee (HCLG) published a call for evidence on the issues around council tax collection. This call for evidence has supplied an opportunity for all stakeholders within the industry of council tax arrears collection to be heard, but to obtain a truly balanced view on the recovery process. 

It is vital that the committee receives as many submissions as possible ahead of today’s deadline, and I’m pleased to confirm that we have submitted ours. 

The call for evidence consisted of only 5 questions, that seemed, on the face of it, relatively straightforward – but let us not be fooled, the devil is in the detail! Our response had a particular focus on supplying details of: 

• The good practice that most Local Authorities already follow. 

• Examples of the good practices that we at Dukes have implemented in partnership with our clients to ensure effective collections, whilst helping customers get out and stay out of debt. 

• Why we believe that the use of enforcement should not be feared, sensationalised, or seen as a method of last resort. 

• The potential implications of changes to legislation. 

• The negative impacts of localised council tax reduction schemes and the roll out of Universal Credit on council tax arrears. 

With our response now submitted, we wait to hear whether it will be accepted. All being well, and if so, the HCLG will publish on the committee’s website.  Keep your eyes peeled for a subsequent update from me announcing when all submissions have been published.