Liability order

If you have defaulted on the payment arrangement on the summons, you will now be subject to further recovery action.

This can be:

• an instruction to your employer to make deductions from your salary or wages
• a request to the Department for Work and Pensions to make deductions from your benefits
• a request to the county court to place a charge on your property (if you own it) and interest can be applied to the balance owed
• apply to the county court for a bankruptcy order, and a further cost of at least £1270 will be incurred

Alternatively, the debt may be transferred to Enforcement Agents, incurring a £75 fee for each liability order. If a visit is required, £235 will be added for each liability order and a further charge of 7.5% is added where the amount due is over £1,500.

The enforcement agents contracted by us are:

If no payment is made after this, a warrant of arrest may be issued, leading to a committal hearing. This will involve further costs of £135 per warrant and £305 for all associated summonses. There is a very real possibility of imprisonment for non-payment of Council Tax.

For information, see our Council Tax recovery process.

Page last updated: 11 April 2025