Isle of Wight Council fell short in its Council Tax collection by more than £4million in each of the last 3 years, according to new data. Freedom of Information requests sent to the Isle of Wight Council reveal how it fares in collecting Council Tax from its residents. The data received shows that 10,044 accounts failed to pay their full Council Tax bill in 2023/24, leaving the council short of £4,708,238.01. This is a similar story to 2022/23, when 9759 accounts had not paid off their bills by the end of March 2023. As a result, the council was short in its collections by £4,082,120.64. Iin 2021/22, the council again found itself more than £4million down. Arrears from 10,179 accounts contributed to an overall deficit of £4,087,130.09. Those 3 years alone add up to £12.8million that Isle of Wight residents did not or could not pay on time. The data indicates that the council ‘concluded’ £2,142,803 and wrote off £180,662 worth of Council Tax from the same 3-year period, as of 11th July 2024. This still leaves £10,554,023 unaccounted for. As the research by Accident Claims Advice has focused only on uncollected Council Tax from recent years, the true deficit could be even higher. Like many councils across the country, Isle of Wight Council chose to increase their residents’ Council Tax bill by 4.99% for 2024/25, which is the highest increase allowed without the need for a referendum. For those who miss paying their Council Tax and do not qualify for financial support, the council’s enforcement measures start with issuing a reminder and can result in a court summons. A liability order, which can be ordered by the courts, gives councils the ability to collect outstanding Council Tax debts from wages or certain benefits payments.
An Isle of Wight Council spokesperson has said:
“Our revenues team have a robust recovery programme to collect all unpaid council tax. The team encourage all taxpayers facing financial difficulties to contact us at the earliest opportunity to discuss how they are able to make payment and to check as to whether there is any eligibility for Local Council Tax Support.
Article continues below this advertisement “If there is no proposal for payment offered, further court action is taken to obtain a liability order which enables an attachment to earnings to be implemented or a referral to the Council’s enforcement agent to recover outstanding monies.”
Maybe they should not continually rip off the public by cutting services but still raising council tax,ridiculous amount of money for what they provide,no wonder people cannot afford it,and struggle to pay.
maybe they council need to look at their wage structure first,and stop giving themselves pay rises when others have never had one in years!
The council should be cutting expenditure and cutting council tax instead of threatening people with misery, distress and punishment for choosing to eat instead of paying for the council to spend on dossers and spongers, which includes councillors greed
“This still leaves £10,554,023 unaccounted for” then it is about time the council replaced their council tax recovery team and put the new lot on performance related pay so they can’t sit there doing very little.
Once again, those that pay are supporting those that pay nothing.
The council workers just had best part of 6% pay rise obviously part paid by Starmer stealing from the pensioners.
As the song goes, “You ain’t seen nothing yet”….
I used to be proud of my country, now I weep and despair.
If the councils team aren’t up to the job, sell the debt to a debt recovery business and they will send the ‘boys’ round to negotiate some payment.
“If there is no proposal for payment offered, further court action is taken to obtain a liability order which enables an attachment to earnings to be implemented or a referral to the Council’s enforcement agent to recover outstanding monies.
.
So, threaten, pester and harass someone who is working and on minimum wage, but what about the benefit spongers who don’t pay any, what about the leeches getting more in state benefits than the workers – why aren’t they being threatened with jail and pestered for more money.
get off the backs of the workers and start cutting the benefits freebies, spongers charters and other hand outs to every sob story going and then cut council tax to a level that reflects the service we actually get.
Too many are claiming to be single parents, yet never sleep alone. They then pay zero council tax, and IF can be bothered to work a few hours 16 a week, can claim thousands extra a year and still receive free c.tax.
Many however work cash in hand in nail bars, hair salon, food establishments and the ‘invisible’ live in lover who is living as the single mother, rent free does the same or sells/ grows dope and their income exceeds many working people.
Hence WE pay more council taxes to subsidise the growing amount of spongers
The island charges one of the most expensive Council taxes in the country.
The island charges the most expensive Green waste charges in the country.
The island even charge people 50p to have a P*ss.
The island unlike other parts of the UK charge an overnight parking charge
of £2
and we were told the Great Train Robbers were crooks
Lol
IW Council are a joke
westminster council tax band A – £1282.97 for this year
Ryde council tax band A – £1501.80 for this year
being mugged off on the island
Proof the island is run by greedy Robbing B’stards
Westminster is a much cleaner Council, it is home
to the P.M and Royals
Yet IW charge families more to live on the island.
Says a lot about the persons running the island
And all this information of yours is gathered how?
This council is utterly useless at everything. And to have some muppet come out to say they have a ‘robust recovery department’???!!
CLEARLY NOT!!! Or the money wouldn’t be owing would it? Any sackings for the incompetents that allowed this huge amount to go uncollected? I imagine not! Utterly shameful.
All Government employed organisations and politicians are
Useless, part of the job curriculum
I was always under the impression if an Household does not
pay their council tax, they are imprisoned.
Maybe not anymore!
I would love to know how many households pay
single persons Council tax, even though more than
1 person lives in the property.
Council tax is a joke, abolish council tax and
make persons pay higher tax on their income.
Much fairer for everyone
Problem is the workers pay and those who are on benefits would pay absolutely nothing.. Abolish it all together and charge you for the services you use is another option
By the time of the next election
The current Labour Party would have finished this
country off!
Time to emigrate me thinks.
Can’t be worse than the Tories and what they have done over the past 10 years
Very true.
You won’t be saying that soon.
Let’s bear in mind here, Labour were not voted in, the Tories were voted out! The dreadful position we have now with awful Labour is 100% down to the Tories being so utterly useless for the last 14years. You think things are bad now? We have another four years of this. By which time even commenting negatively will be illegal.
Kier commie starmer,the only MP to win a general election,and lose the next one,all in the space of a few weeks,he is a power mad dictator who prefers davos to westminster
in five years time (if he hasnt been booted out) this country will be even more unrecognisable if he and rayner get their way,blairs puppet!
I could not have said it better myself.
Easier to put it up than collect what is owed.
Bring back the poll tax, a fairer tax.
Yeah, cos that worked so well didn’t it.
Poll tax is much fairer for everyone.
More persons in a property created more services needed.
Why should an household with 3 people in it pay the same
as an household with 5 people in it.
“Our revenues team have a robust recovery programme to collect all unpaid council tax.”
“Those 3 years alone add up to £12.8million that Isle of Wight residents did not or could not pay on time”
Either the Revenues collects the unpaid tax or it doesn’t – which is it?
There must be thousands lost for free homes for the chavs. All council tax is, is a roof tax, and they should pay like anyone else for a roof even though it is free. They have got a guaranteed income, also all for free,very often more than a workman brings home, so that should be taxed like eveyone elses.
What this does not say is how many court orders were issued, if we say 10 million a year on a council tax bill of the lowest at 1500 pounds then that is just under 7000 households not paying their share. In council properties surely it is part of the housing contract you pay all bills that are liable in a timely fashion or you are in breech of your agreement..
Council tax what a wonderful idea, I seem to recall many years ago that we were once promised a reduction in it once the Council had a profit. Never ever seen it in all of my life just an increase every year by the maximum allowed
Maybe they should scrap .the non floating heap called the bridge !!!
Why should the majority of the island pay council tax for this turd ?????,*
And also the jenny when the turd is out of operation??????
I have and never will use this lump of crap . I don’t get any special offers to drive to my work so why should I and the majority of islanders pay for the lazy folk who use it ???????
The IWCC needs to get there act together for the sake of all those that do pay there council tax
Council Numpty’s are still working from home.
Demonstrates, perfectly, the incompetence of the council. Rid of them all. Get some brains for once. There again, if you had any brain at all that is the last place you would want to work, sorry, exist. They don’t know what work is, any of them.
I don’t believe it! Who’s not paying up? Why aren’t they being made to pay with extra added for the cost of chasing them.
It’s not fair to let people get away with it while the rest of us pay up on time.
Council tax is a scam