Vulnerable residents with council tax debts should be given breathing space to repay arrears rather than face the threat of bailiffs, two charities say.

Debt charities StepChange and the Money Advice Trust have reported rising levels of council tax debt. They argue that increased use of bailiffs by councils could deepen these residents' financial problems. The Local Government Association (LGA) said that bailiffs were only used as a last resort.
'Aggressive collection'

The LGA said that cuts to local government funding meant that some people who had previously been exempt from paying council tax were now having to pay. "Significant cuts mean many [councils] have had little choice but to reduce council tax discounts for the working-age poor or low-income families...to avoid finding even more savings from spending on local services to meet the shortfall," said councillor Claire Kober, of the LGA. The two charities say about a quarter of callers to their debt services have council tax arrears.....Read more here

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