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who is liable for the council tax bill once you move out of a private rent house?

i didn't inform the council but did hand my keys back to the landlord. i moved into a new property & started paying my new council tax bill from the house i rent in a different county. Even though i have a new tenency stating what day i moved into my new house they are still saying i am liable for the council tax bill when i wasn't living in that house.

Public Comments

1. You are not liable for the bill. This happened to me once. You need to write a letter to your council and keep a copy of it. The letter should state: Your old address The dates you occupied it - from X to Y date Your new address and the date you moved in. Finally, you need to tell them what action you want them to take. This is probably to send you a final statement showing any money owed or any overpayment you may have made (this is important with paying monthly in advance - they could owe you!) AND / OR ask them to send any forms you need to fill in AND ask them to put your account on hold (ie to stop them chasing the debt up). They won't put a hold on your account but you need to ask them. It depends on the council, but my problem was that you had to complete a form to say you had moved. A letter was not good enough for them - they ignored letter and could only tick their box if they had the right form. Keep a copy of the letter you send and every time they write to you from now on, write "please see and respond to the attached letter" on their letter and send it back to them with a copy of yours. If you receive a letter from a debt collector, send a copy of your letter to the debt collector. The council will threaten legal action etc to intimidate you so don't let them intimidate you. Stick to your guns and keep repeating your request over and over until they take the action they need. It needs to be in writing and continually sending a copy of the letter means you don't have to keep re-stating your position. Plus it shows the date you started this to show them how long they have taken to sort it out. Have patience - you'll get it sorted in the end.
2. I know Belinda is trying to help, but what she's said isn't strictly true. You say you handed your keys back to your landlord but didn't inform the council. I'd defintitly tell the council what date you moved out for a start, but be warned; if you've left your tenancy early, then even though you've moved out, you can still be held liable for council tax until your tenancy finishes. If the property was let furnished, you'll get a discount from the date you left, if it was unfurnished you'll get a full exemption. I think a simple call to the council would suffice, I really don't think every council is out to 'intimidate' you and I don't think you'll need to go to the lengths that Belinda has advised you. If neither you or your landlord told the council you moved and nobody had moved in since, then how are they going to know when to end your account?