Referrals to bailiffs in England and Wales to recover council debts have risen by nearly 20%, a BBC investigation has found.
Councils were asked how many referrals were made between April and October 2023, and the same period the previous year.
The number of referrals made by Birmingham City Council, which ‘topped the list’ of the 280 local authorities that responded to the Freedom of Information request, increased almost sixfold.
The city council made 7,875 referrals between April and October 2022 – and 43,283 over the same period in 2023.
Debts chased by local authorities included councils tax, parking fines, business rates and housing arrears.
The senior policy officer at Debt Justice, Joe Cox, said: ‘Using bailiffs to collect council tax debt is an outdated, cruel and inefficient practice that pushes people further into debt and despair.
‘Councils should be pursuing ethical alternatives including supporting residents and creating flexible re-payment plans.
‘Local authorities also need to have realistic collection policies that accept that some of these debts are simply unpayable and will have to be written off.’
If you were interested in this article, check out our feature: Time to ban the use of bailiffs.
