Stop the Knock: Bailiff use amongst councils in England and Wales
Our Public Affairs and Policy Officer, Jasmin Dhaliwal outlines our latest Stop the Knock research into bailiff use and local authority debt collection, in partnership with the Centre for Social Justice.
Posted August 13, 2024
Not everyone finds it easy to keep up with their council tax payments, and when payments are missed, local authorities employ various collection practices, including the use of bailiffs (also known as enforcement agents). Bailiffs have the right to visit a property and can remove and sell goods to repay certain debts, including council tax arrears, parking penalty charge notices and other debts.
Our Stop the Knock research
We published our first Stop the Knock report back in 2015, our first look at the proliferation of bailiff use amongst local authorities.
Our latest findings, based on Freedom of Information requests, provide an update on the use of bailiffs to recover council tax arrears, parking notices and other debts by authorities in England and Wales, as well as mapping out debt collection practices more broadly. Our latest Stop the Knock research shows that local authorities in England and Wales referred 2.7 million debts to bailiffs in 2022/23. You can view the full dataset, as well as the interactive map, on our website: www.stoptheknock.org.
We know that local authorities are under significant financial pressure, and that collecting council tax is crucial for providing local services. However, it’s equally important that collection practices are fair and supportive, and that enforcement agents are only ever used as a last resort. This would also mean more efficient and effective collection practices for councils, too.
Our findings show that 1.3 million people fell behind on council tax bills in 2022/23.
And wider research from the Centre for Social Justice, in their Still Collecting Dust report, shows the majority of households in council tax arrears are struggling financially:
- Over 1 in 10 households in the lowest income decile report being having been behind on their council tax compared to 1 in 20 households across Great Britain
- 47% of households who are behind on their council tax are in relative poverty, (defined as 60% of the net median household income after housing costs)
- 28% of households with council tax arrears say they could not afford any unexpected bill at all, rising to over half (55%) who say they could not afford anything over £100. This is compared to just 8% of all respondents who say they could not afford any unexpected bill.
Council tax collection can often escalate quickly, with people who miss a couple of payments then becoming liable for their full annual bill. This is clearly out of step with reality of people who owe council tax, who recognise the importance of repaying, but can’t afford to pay quickly or in full.
What we’d like to see
We’ve refreshed and re-published our six steps for local authorities – including our call for councils to exempt Council Tax Support recipients from bailiff action. It’s great to see that nearly all councils refer to free debt advice, but our research revealed only 10% of councils have a policy of exempting Council Tax Support recipients, who have already been identified as requiring additional support, from bailiff action. We are also encouraging councils to be more proactive in establishing an individual’s financial and/or personal circumstances, before they seek a liability order.
But this isn’t just about what local authorities should do. We’d also like to see central government take steps to better support councils, and to help prevent council tax debt occurring in the first place. This should include amending the Council Tax collection regulations to increase flexibility for councils and give people in debt more time to engage with their council, before collection and enforcement escalates. Investment in increased, ring-fenced funding for local council tax support schemes is also needed.
Finally, when bailiffs are instructed by councils or any creditor, it’s crucial this process is completed to the highest possible standard. We welcome the work of the Enforcement Conduct Board (ECB) to drive up standards in this area, but we’re also calling on government to give the ECB statutory powers, so that it can be an effective, independent regulator. We’ll be engaging with the ECB’s consultation on standards this summer, too.
If you have any thoughts on our Stop the Knock research or you’d like to find out more, please get in touch by emailing policy@moneyadvicetrust.org.
Jasmin is the Money Advice Trust's Public Affairs and Policy Officer. She joined the charity in October 2023, having previously worked in policy and research for a housing association.. View all posts from Jasmin Dhaliwal.
