Agenda item

Report of the Head of Collections & Housing Benefits

Members received a report which provided information requested by the Committee at the meeting on 4 June 2013.  This included information on the effectiveness of all Debt Collection Policies within the Council, the draft Council Tax Debt Collection and Recovery Policy (which had been updated to include the corporate vulnerability criteria and check points to identify vulnerability at key points in the process), and the outcome of the review of the Corporate Debt Recovery Policy.

Members considered the report, made comments and asked questions as follows:

·                    Clarification was sought on the pilot completion date and the type of information that would result.  In terms of the data sharing pilot, Members were advised that the debtor data put into the Council’s system could now be cross referenced against department data and would flag any cases where further enquiry was required.  There were currently seven red flags on Council Tax support payments.  The second pilot was tracking 7,500 CTS payers.

The officer stated that he did have concerns in terms of the collection rates but that this was partly due to Council Tax support and reprofiling. Recovery action had been delayed until now.

·                    A Member questioned the extent to which properties where vulnerable people lived were flagged and whether this could be addressed.  The officer advised that whilst there would be some merit in flagging properties which housed a particular type of person, for example sheltered housing, this could be problematic due to people moving. If properties were used for other purposes it may result in a flag which could slow the collection rate of monies owing.  The officer, at the Member’s request, undertook to further consider this issue.

·                    Concern was expressed that credit cards were accepted by the Council for payment of Council Tax and that there appeared to be no signpost to credit unions.  The officer responded that due to channel migration, credit and debit cards were viewed as the way forward and that significant sums were taken by the Council in credit card payments each year.  There would be an additional two kiosks located in Access Harrow but ultimately the Council could not govern payment methods.  In terms of the credit union, the officer advised that work was underway.

·                    Referring to the chart on page 56 of the report, a Member stated that it would be helpful to include the duration /time limit of each stage.  He suggested that there could be value in including Frequently Asked Questions at Appendix C.  The officer responded that duration could be included but that generally from demand to recovery was approximately 3 months.

·                    A Member sought clarification as to the progress of the analysis of the potential impacts of the Welfare Reforms in terms of Housing and collection rates.  An officer advised that there had been a ‘broad brush’ analysis at this stage and that the income management team had been visiting individual cases.  Since the introduction of the size criteria implications in April 2013, a steady increase had not been seen.

·                    The officer acknowledged a Member’s concern that it was not clear who the draft Council Tax Collection and Recovery Policy was aimed at as its tone changed throughout the document but emphasised that it was a draft.  The document was aimed at both debtors and staff.

·                    A Member questioned whether there had been difficulty in putting policies together from three different units and any noticeable difference in collection rates.  An officer advised that lessons had been learnt and that there were similar trigger points.  The Council could now work better with people who had multiple debts.

The Chair thanked the officers for their attendance and for their responses.

RESOLVED:  That

(1)               the update on the effectiveness on the individual Service Debt Recovery Policies be noted;

(2)               the proposed changes within the Council Tax Collection and Recovery Policy  and the Corporate Debt Recovery Policy be noted;

(3)               it be noted that the revised policies would be taken to consultation.