Will Local Authorities collect the Household Charge by going door to door?

[ajapale]

Several OT posts deleted.

Topic reminder:

 

[Leper]

Most of us are talking in circles on why something should not be done. Whatever way we look on the Household Charge situation there is only one way in which it can be collected and that is by cold-calling door-to-door. Anything else is waffle.

I am not saying that the Council Household Charge Agents should be accepting cash on door-steps. I am saying that the occupant of the house who is the owner should be informed that if you do not pay up within a given time-frame, you will be prosecuted. If necessary, prosecutions will have to take place. Follow-up on foot will have to take place with absent owners. The councils are charged with imposing the Household Charge not with the moral aspect. A judge in court has the "call" on that. You always have Conscientious Objectors for whatever reason, valid or not.

This is not an impossible task. If it were impossible we would not have TV licence inspectors. If we had not TV licence inspectors with power to prosecute very few people would buy a TV licence.

Look around there are several government money making rackets legally being entertained e.g. the NCT test. The Household Charge is just another and it will be followed by Water Rates, reintroduction of House Rates etc etc.

Door-to-door is the only way which will reap payments.

 

[ajapale]

...and how many people haven't been prosecuted for not having a TV licence, there must be thousands of people who evade the system

Door to door won't work, people will refuse to answer their doors, they will be away at work, not at home, it will be an impossible task.

Door to Door won't work very well because the property precursor tax is a tax on household owners and not on household occupiers.

The notion of door to door collections is also an old fashioned and increasing less used option. Years ago you had door to door insurance agents, rent collectors, milk collections, charity collections, money lenders, etc. This is not the way people do business anymore.


As mentioned above the government/local authorities would be much better off desigining and operating a properly constructed relational integrated electronic database of household owners/liable households and progressing the collection process in that way before engaging in aggravating and futile door to door collections/inspections/investigations/reminders.

 

[44brendan]

I don't see this happening. In my view, it was a gut response from Phil Hogan. It really makes no sennse and is likely to cost far more than ever would be collected.

 

[terrontress]

A door to door collector could result in landlords paying up as they don't wish to annoy their private tenants. People are more likely to face down the collectors themselves but the tenant will probably tell the truth and will be annoyed as they thought their rent is going toward the household charge.

 

[oldnick]

Actually, I think it is good if tenants were made more aware that there is such a thing as property charges, and that as a consequence rents must increase. If it needs collectors to make tenants aware ,so much the better.

Many tenants know nothing or little about property charges, especially tenants from overseas. Also tenants rarely consider that each extra cost to a landlord eventually drip feeds down to the tenant.

Letting property is a business and it is insane for anyone to expect a business to continually operate at a loss. Unfortunately, many people in this country are insane in their attitude towards landlords.
("lets tax landlords but they mustn't pass it on to the tenant"" .
Can you imagine "let's charge shops higher VAT,rates, taxes etc but the retailer must keep the prices down" !!)

Even more unfortunate is the fact that there are thousands of landlords who absorb losses - like these charges -rather than just quit the business, which they would do if they were operating a shop, factory etc.

I gave all my tenants an article from a newspaper which stated that a landlords organisation was advocating passing the charges direct to the tenant. i wrote that this year I would not do this ,but obviously I would do so in next years increased rent ("Sorry guys -it won't be me increasing the rent ,it'll be the govnt").

I make it very clear that half of every penny, after all other many many costs, they pay me is given to the govnt. And that most certainly includes NPPR and property charges.

 

[ajapale]

Tenants/Occupiers are liable for refuse charges and will be liable for water charges.

Household Owners and Landlords (not tenants) are liable for the precursor property tax and how they deal with that tax is a matter for them working within the landlord/tenant leglislation of course.