Ensuring customers are not subject to unnecessary recovery action, additional costs or hardship

The request was successful.

Dear Islington Borough Council,

A council taxpayer who owes more than just the current year's liability runs the risk of incurring additional recovery costs through a further application for a liability order if payments which are intended for the current year's liability are allocated by the council's computer to the previous year's liability. This would most likely happen where a non specific payment is made and the computer software is set to automatically allocate these payments to the oldest year's debt.

Councils computer systems have the necessary flexibility to be set to allow non specific payments to be allocated to the arrears or the current year's liability.

I understand that the majority of billing authorities have their computer software set to ensure that their customers are not subject to unnecessary recovery action, additional costs or hardship, i.e. so non specific payments are allocated to the current year's liability.

How does Islington Council have its computer software set to deal with non specific payments. Current or oldest year's liability?

Yours faithfully,

Gwyn Worth

FOIA, Islington Borough Council

Dear Ms Worth,

 

Thank you for your Freedom of Information Act request, received on
09/10/2017.  Your request has been processed, and your unique reference
number is FOI 493703.  Please make note of this reference number should
you need to contact us about your request.

 

Our team will send your request to the appropriate service area within
Islington Council, and an officer from that team will respond directly to
your request.

 

If you have any questions, please contact us by email at
[1][Islington Borough Council request email]

 

Kind Regards,

 

Information Governance Team

Resources

4^th Floor, 7 Newington Barrow Way

Islington

N7 7EP

 

 

 

 

From: Gwyn Worth [mailto:[FOI #437375 email]]
Sent: 09 October 2017 19:29
To: FOIA <[email address]>
Subject: Freedom of Information request - Ensuring customers are not
subject to unnecessary recovery action, additional costs or hardship

 

Dear Islington Borough Council,

A council taxpayer who owes more than just the current year's liability
runs the risk of incurring additional recovery costs through a further
application for a liability order if payments which are intended for the
current year's liability are allocated by the council's computer to the
previous year's liability. This would most likely happen where a non
specific payment is made and the computer software is set to automatically
allocate these payments to the oldest year's debt.

Councils computer systems have the necessary flexibility to be set to
allow non specific payments to be allocated to the arrears or the current
year's liability.

I understand that the majority of billing authorities have their computer
software set to ensure that their customers are not subject to unnecessary
recovery action, additional costs or hardship, i.e. so non specific
payments are allocated to the current year's liability.

How does Islington Council have its computer software set to deal with non
specific payments. Current or oldest year's liability?

Yours faithfully,

Gwyn Worth

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Dear FOIA,

Response to this request is delayed. By law, Islington Borough Council should normally have responded promptly and by 6 November 2017

Yours sincerely,

Gwyn Worth

Dear FOIA,

Can you please advise when you expect to have a response to my 9 October 2017 request.

Yours sincerely,

Gwyn Worth

Dear FOIA,

Response to this request is delayed. By law, Islington Borough Council should normally have responded promptly and by 6 November 2017.

Yours sincerely,

Gwyn Worth

Dear FOIA,

Response to this request is delayed. By law, Islington Borough Council should normally have responded promptly and by 6 November 2017...

Yours sincerely,

Gwyn Worth

FOIA, Islington Borough Council

Dear Ms Worth,

 

Please accept my sincere apologies that you have not yet had a response to
your request. I have contacted the relevant department and requested that
this is responded to as a matter of urgency.

 

Yours sincerely,

 

Leila

 

Leila Ridley

Information Compliance Manager

4^th Floor

Newington Barrow Way

London

N7 7EP

 

Alternative contact: [1][email address]

Website: [2]www.islington.gov.uk

 

 

 

From: Gwyn Worth [mailto:[FOI #437375 email]]
Sent: 08 November 2017 10:32
To: FOIA <[email address]>
Subject: RE: Freedom of Information request - Ensuring customers are not
subject to unnecessary recovery action, additional costs or hardship - FOI
493703 Acknowledgement

 

Dear FOIA,

Response to this request is delayed. By law, Islington Borough Council
should normally have responded promptly and by 6 November 2017

Yours sincerely,

Gwyn Worth

show quoted sections

Dear FOIA,

Response to this request is delayed. By law, Islington Borough Council should normally have responded promptly and by 6 November 2017......

Yours sincerely,

Gwyn Worth

Dear FOIA,

Response to this request is long overdue. By law, under all circumstances, Islington Borough Council should have responded by now.

Yours sincerely,

Gwyn Worth

Dear FOIA,

Response to this request is long overdue. By law, under all circumstances, Islington Borough Council should have responded by now..

Yours sincerely,

Gwyn Worth

FOIA, Islington Borough Council

Dear Ms Worth,

 

FREEDOM OF INFORMATION REQUEST REF NO: FOI 493703

 

Thank you for your information request, received on: 09/10/2017

 

In your request, you asked us:

 

How does Islington Council have its computer software set to deal with non
specific payments. Current or oldest year's liability??

After consulting our Finance department, the following response can be
provided.  Please see below.

The Council’s software is set to ensure that their customers are not
subject to unnecessary recovery action, additional costs or hardship. 
 The only exception is whether the customer makes a specific request to
allocate payments to another specific financial year.

Please accept our sincerest apologies for the delay in providing you with
your response.

If you are not satisfied with the way in which your request has been
handled or the outcome, you may request an internal review within two
calendar months of the date of this response by contacting: Information
Complaints, Digital Services, Room G17, Town Hall, Upper Street, London N1
2UD.  Email: [1][email address]

 

Further information is also available from the Information Commissioner's
Office, at Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF. 
Telephone: 01625 545 700.  Web: [2]www.ico.org.uk

 

Yours sincerely,

 

Information Governance Team

Resources

4th Floor, 7 Newington Barrow Way

Islington

N7 7EP

 

Email: [3][Islington Borough Council request email]

Web: [4]www.islington.gov.uk

 

 

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Dear FOIA,

Thank you for your response. I consider Islington Borough Council has provided the information I requested. The purpose of this exercise was to ascertain whether or not the principles surrounding the appropriation of payments were being adhered to.

R v Miskin Lower Justices (1953)

It was held in R v Miskin Lower Justices, that where an amount obviously relates to a specific liability, it would be an unwarranted assumption to allocate the payment elsewhere.

If no instruction is given at the time of payment, then the council has a duty to allocate payment to the account which it is most beneficial to the debtor to reduce. That would be in the majority of cases the current liability if the consequences of allocating payment to the arrears meant that the customer was subject to unnecessary recovery action, additional costs etc.

I understand by the council's response (see *NOTE*) that there are measures in place to ensure that unspecified payments are allocated to the account which it is least burdensome for the debtor, and consequently the laws surrounding the appropriation of payments are being complied with. This effectively means that an unmatched payment allocated to the oldest debt (having the consequences of putting the current year's liability also in arrears) would be reallocated to the current year's liability on account of the circumstances implying that this was the debtor's intention (least burdensome for the debtor). If it appears I have misunderstood anything from what I have stated I would appreciate if you would correct me.

*NOTE*: "The Council’s software is set to ensure that their customers are not subject to unnecessary recovery action, additional costs or hardship. The only exception is whether the customer makes a specific request to allocate payments to another specific financial year."

Yours sincerely,

Gwyn Worth