Council bailiffs are still chasing people for council tax payments

Bailiffs are still chasing people for council tax payments even after the Government brought in coronavirus social distancing rules.

Enforcement officers were still hounding homes until at least last Tuesday despite people self-isolating, the Civil Enforcement Association said.

And self-employed ‘repo men’ may have been working after this as it has not been banned by the ministry of communities and local government.

The CEA, which represents more than 1,800 bailiffs, warned officers to wear rubber gloves during visits but did not stop them from making repossessions.

It flies in the face of the Government’s coronavirus lockdown rules, implemented on Tuesday, that only key workers should be operating as usual.

And comes just days after the CEA said bailiffs around the country would stop all repossessions during the crisis.

The country’s three largest debt charities – Citizens Advice, Money Advice Trust and Step Change Debt Charity – called for the PM to stop local authorities calling in debts until the pandemic passes.

A spokesman for Citizens Advice, which is calling for a three-month tax break, told the Times: ‘Aggressive collection of council tax at a time when people are concerned about the health and financial consequences of Covid-19 is plain wrong.’

Bailiffs recover around £2.6million of debts for local councils each year, with much of it from council tax and parking.

Despite the coronavirus lockdown, those in debt will still get calls and emails chasing payments.

MailOnline has contacted the the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government for comment.

CEA Chief Executive Russell Hamblin-Boone said debt collections would be put on hold and bailiffs would use their vans to deliver essential supplies for the NHS.

Mr Hamblin-Boone told the Mirror: ‘Despite the false information circulated by debt advice charities, enforcement agents are not enforcing debts.

‘Many agents are working with the NHS to support the voluntary initiative and many firms have changed the use of their fleet vehicles to support deliveries of supplies.

‘The only activity relating to unpaid bills they are still carrying out was to offer extensions.

He added: ‘Where people are being contacted it is to extend payment plans or offer payment holidays.’

Further clarity was outlined in a letter produced by the bailiffs association and sent to Local Government Minister Robert Jenrick to outline the changing situation.

It read: ‘In the last week, since the CIVEA guidance was published and government advice updated, there has been a complete suspension of enforcement visits, whether to recover unpaid court fines, penalty charge notices, council tax or non-domestic business rates.

‘Where a skeleton staff continues to operate remotely, local authorities have requested that a Iight-touch communication is maintained.

‘This is primarily identifying vulnerable people and offering extensions to repayment plans and payment holidays.’

It said certain vehicles used within the day-to-day work of debt collection had instead been registered for the use of NHS volunteers.

The letter added: ‘Where agents and contact centre staff have been furloughed, firms are allowing staff to volunteer to support the NHS voluntary initiative.

‘In many cases, firms have registered fleet vehicles for change of use to be used by volunteers.’

It is also noted it could be many months before normal service resumes, with bailiffs association placing no set time limit on their revised operations.