For more information and interviews contact Toby Murray on toby@debtjustice.org.uk or +44 7716 200346.
New research from Debt Justice released today finds that 4.4 million people in the UK have fallen behind on their council tax, up from 3.2 million just a year before, as rising costs push more households into crisis.
The findings, based on data from the latest UK Household Longitudinal Survey (Understanding Society), show a 37% increase in the number of people who missed at least one council tax payment in the preceding 12 months. [1]
Local authorities are one of the most prolific users of bailiffs to collect debts. Despite government guidance that they should only use bailiffs as a last resort, local authorities sent bailiffs to collection outstanding council tax debt more than 1.3 million times in 2022/23.[2]
The research estimates that local authority use of bailiffs costs the UK taxpayer and the wider economy at least £91 million a year because of additional pressure on health services, lost employment and housing support.[3]
The research finds that households in council tax arrears are overwhelmingly on low incomes, with 78% in the bottom half of the income distribution. Nearly a third live below the poverty line, and more than a quarter of people in debt have skipped meals in the last year.
Jo, a member of the Greater Manchester Ban the Bailiffs Group, recalled her experience of being in council tax arrears.
“It was a terrifying experience, because I didn’t want the bailiffs. I had a three-year old child, at the time. I felt bullied, I felt disbelieved, and I felt desperate. It was the beginning of our descent into abject poverty, really. They charge ridiculous fees, they charge interest, so the person that they’re collecting from is then in debt again to the bailiff. We need to work with communities that are subject to bailiffs. Prevention is always better than a cure.” [4]
Heidi Chow, Executive Director of Debt Justice, said:
“Council tax debt is spiralling rapidly as household budgets are stretched to breaking point. Instead of offering support, councils are sending in bailiffs – an outdated tactic based on intimation that only deepens hardship. The government needs to change legislation to ban bailiffs from council tax debt collection.”
ENDS
Notes:
Read Debt Justice’s full Ban the Bailiffs briefing here
[1] The research is based on data from the UK Household Longitudinal Survey (Understanding Society). The comparison is between numbers of people who missed at least one council tax payment in the last 12 months, from the latest wave of the survey – fieldwork done between 2022 and 2024. The previous wave surveyed a similar group between 2021 and 2023.
A methodological appendix is available on request.
[2] Stop the Knock data collection and analysis was conducted by the Money Advice Trust and the Centre for Social Justice: https://www.stoptheknock.org/
[3] Modelling done using National Audit Office data. Full methodology available on request.
[4] Table 1: Costs associated with certificated bailiff action8
| Recovery stage | Enforcement charges |
| Enforcement notice (letting you know action is being taken against you) | £75 |
| Enforcement visit to “take control of goods” (visiting you at home and valuing your possessions) | £235 + 7.5% of debt above £1500 |
| Enforcement visit to remove goods | £110 + 7.5% of debt above £1500 |
Fees for storage, locksmiths, court costs, auctioneer commissions and advertising can also be added to a person’s bill.
Debt Justice (formerly Jubilee Debt Campaign) is a UK charity working to end poverty caused by unjust debt through education, research and campaigning: https://debtjustice.org.uk/
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