Council tax non-payer caught - by Facebook
Published Friday 21st November 08
A man who owed more than £1,000 in council tax has agreed to pay up – after being ‘netted’ on Facebook.
Richard Moore, a Revenues Officer at Rugby Borough Council, tried the novel approach to council tax collection after all efforts to trace the man failed.
The man claimed to have been living in New Zealand and had amassed more than £1,000 in owed council tax.
But Richard, who has worked for the Council for more than two years, snared him on the social networking site.
Richard said: "Inspectors had gone to his property and we'd sent letters out but nothing was coming back. We were a bit stuck as to what to do.
"The couple had unusual surnames and I just had a look on Facebook. I had never been on Facebook before so I registered and put their names in and the man's partner came up - I searched her name first.
"I could not view her profile, but I could see who her friends were.
"One of her friends was this guy and I checked his profile and it did talk about New Zealand. I sent him an e-mail thinking he was in New Zealand. Five minutes later I had an e-mail back much to the surprise of everyone in the office.
"He said 'what do you think you are playing at, who do you think you are'! And he said I should have written to the property on official paper.
"I sent one back saying I was very sorry and if you are in New Zealand we need to know you have gone and I did not hear anything else.
"The following morning he phoned me up and I explained to him we had been trying to contact him."
The man explained that his cousin was now living in the property, and that although he had spent time in New Zealand, he was now living in Scotland and thought his cousin had been paying the bills. The man paid £1,059 there and then over the phone on his debit card.
Richard added: "This is the first time we've ever done something like this, but with success like that it is something will look to use more often. It's the most creative way so far we have contacted someone who has not paid their bills."
Councillor David Wright, Portfolio Holder for Resources and Corporate Governance, said: "This was a really ingenious way of tracking down someone who had failed to pay their Council Tax - albeit for what seems to have been a genuine reason.
"I applaud Richard's dedication to catching someone who was, for a while, so difficult to locate.
"People should know that our team of Revenues Officers will leave people with nowhere to hide if they do not pay their Council Tax, however, if people are having trouble paying, they should contact us before it becomes a problem."
Anyone who is having trouble paying their Council Tax bill is urged to contact Rugby Borough Council's Revenues Unit on (01788) 533498 or the Council's partners at Rugby Citizens Advice Bureau on (01788) 541000.
Photo: Cllr David Wright
The man claimed to have been living in New Zealand and had amassed more than £1,000 in owed council tax.
But Richard, who has worked for the Council for more than two years, snared him on the social networking site.
Richard said: "Inspectors had gone to his property and we'd sent letters out but nothing was coming back. We were a bit stuck as to what to do.
"The couple had unusual surnames and I just had a look on Facebook. I had never been on Facebook before so I registered and put their names in and the man's partner came up - I searched her name first.
"I could not view her profile, but I could see who her friends were.
"One of her friends was this guy and I checked his profile and it did talk about New Zealand. I sent him an e-mail thinking he was in New Zealand. Five minutes later I had an e-mail back much to the surprise of everyone in the office.
"He said 'what do you think you are playing at, who do you think you are'! And he said I should have written to the property on official paper.
"I sent one back saying I was very sorry and if you are in New Zealand we need to know you have gone and I did not hear anything else.
"The following morning he phoned me up and I explained to him we had been trying to contact him."
The man explained that his cousin was now living in the property, and that although he had spent time in New Zealand, he was now living in Scotland and thought his cousin had been paying the bills. The man paid £1,059 there and then over the phone on his debit card.
Richard added: "This is the first time we've ever done something like this, but with success like that it is something will look to use more often. It's the most creative way so far we have contacted someone who has not paid their bills."
Councillor David Wright, Portfolio Holder for Resources and Corporate Governance, said: "This was a really ingenious way of tracking down someone who had failed to pay their Council Tax - albeit for what seems to have been a genuine reason.
"I applaud Richard's dedication to catching someone who was, for a while, so difficult to locate.
"People should know that our team of Revenues Officers will leave people with nowhere to hide if they do not pay their Council Tax, however, if people are having trouble paying, they should contact us before it becomes a problem."
Anyone who is having trouble paying their Council Tax bill is urged to contact Rugby Borough Council's Revenues Unit on (01788) 533498 or the Council's partners at Rugby Citizens Advice Bureau on (01788) 541000.
Photo: Cllr David Wright