Hi all, I run a helpline for people with bailiff problems and provide the means for enforcement impropriety, and I am very concerned at the advice that a section 13a template is becoming the go-to diagnosis for dealing with council tax arrears.
I created the template back in 2014 for a client who had no prospect of ever settling her council tax arrears due to her being terminal and I succeeded in pleading a case for getting the arrears cancelled by having the council exercise discretionary write off.
After the client died, her estate had no liability.
I updated the template in 2016 following another client, however, I am getting a lot of enquiries asking me to deploy a section 13a discretionary write-off.
My concern is the section 13a is being given out on the internet as a first-stage fix-anything in dealing with council tax arrears.
Councils won't exercise discretionary write off after seeing a templated letter from a Facebook group.
It has to be carefully pleaded, with all supporting evidence provided and a list of causes made out in an accompanying statement of truth - something that cannot be templated - because the exhibit contains medically sensitive information.
This is just a recommendation not to try section 13a's carte-blanche first attempt because councils will become case-hardened making it much more difficult for genuine section 13a pleadings.