Do I Have To Pay Council Tax To Scott And Co?
By
HuutiMoney
If you have been approached by Scott and Co and want to know if you have to pay them for your council tax dues, you should read the following blog post to learn about their role and your rights as a debtor.
Do I Have To Pay Council Tax To Scott And Co?
Yes, you have to pay council tax to Scott and Co if they contact you to collect a council tax debt. Scott and Co are Scotland’s leading diligence and citation service. This means that if they have contacted you for debt collection, the local council has gone to court to get them appointed for the task; mainly because the local council has not been able to recover the amount from you despite their efforts.
However, if you believe that you don’t have council tax arrears or you have been asked to pay someone else’s debt, you should provide evidence in support of your claim and at the same time, demand written proof from Scott and Co regarding the council tax dues claimed to be in your name.
On the other hand, if you do have council tax arrears that you have not been able to pay to the authorities, you have the option of agreeing to a repayment plan with Scott and Co. You cannot ignore the claims by a debt collection agency such as Scott and Co as they are working to collect debt on Court orders and your refusal to pay will be taken as contempt of court.
Before you make any agreement with Scott and Co, you should ask them to prove their identity to you. This can be done by showing any of the following:
- a photograph of themselves
- crest of the Scottish court service
- signature of the sheriff clerk for the area they work in
Once you have an agreement on the debt repayment plan with Scott and Co, you can pay them back in any of the following ways:
- credit card
- debit card
- standing order
- direct debit
Payments can either be paid in a lump sum or via instalments.
How Do Scott And Co Collect Council Tax Debt?
When it comes to debt collection, Scott and Co are likely to follow the below-listed steps:
- They will issue a “Charge to Pay” or “Charge for Payment” to the debtor asking them to pay the debt within the next 14 days.
- If the debtor does not pay back the debt during this time or does not offer to agree to a repayment plan based on instalments, Scott and Co can have their wages or benefits payments stopped, have their bank account frozen or petition them for bankruptcy.
- Scott and Co can also gain an “Attachment of Goods” which authorises them to possess items such as a TV, games console, money, jewellery or antiques and sell them to recover the debt.
Can Scott And Co Visit My House To Collect Council Tax Debt?
Yes, debt collection agents such as Scott and Co can and do visit the homes of debtors to collect arrears. However, they do inform the debtor in advance that they will be visiting along with a proposed date and time.
In addition to this, debt collectors can also perform the following actions to collect council tax debt:
- Use reasonable power such as a locksmith to enter your house to collect the said items (this can only happen if they have visited you at least once before and given you time to pay your dues).
- Collect valuables from your house.
- Sell the collected valuables to recover the amount of debt you owe.
However, they cannot perform any of the following actions:
- Force entry into your home.
- Visit your house from 9 pm to 6 am.
- Visit your house if there are vulnerable household members or children under 16 years old alone at home.
- Use any other mode of entry than the door (e.g. use the windows to enter your house).
What Are My Rights If Scott An Co Send Agents To Visit My House?
First and foremost, it is your right to not allow a debt collector to enter your house if you don’t want them to. ScottandCo can send agents to visit your house as long as they have informed you at least a week in advance. Despite that, you can choose to step outside your house to speak to them and not invite them in. debt collectors do not have the right to a forced entry.
In addition to this, you also have the right to:
- Ask the visitor to provide you with proof of their identity. Dent collectors are required by law to carry a badge, ID card or enforcement agent certificate that they show to residents to confirm their identity when they make house visits.
- The next thing you should ask them is the name and contact details of the company that they represent. You don’t have to open your door to check their identification and can ask them to show them through the window or pass them through the letterbox.
- Only once you are satisfied with their identity confirmation should you proceed with any communication. You still don’t have to open the door and can continue talking through the door, a window or step outside of your home to talk to them.
Conclusion:
The above discussion helps to conclude that if someone has a council tax debt and they are contacted by a debt collection agency such as Scott and Co, they are obliged to pay their council tax debt to them; whether in full, in part or through a repayment plan based on instalments.
References:
Scott and Co (Scotland): This is How to Stop Them Instantly for Free