What happens if I don't pay my Council Tax?

We are committed to helping people to pay their Council Tax bills. This includes:

• maximising take up of Council Tax support and/or reduction
• providing accurate bills as soon as possible
• helping people to make affordable payment arrangements based on their means

Make a claim for Council Tax support

Council Tax - Problems paying your bill?

Join over 80,000 other Coventry residents and pay your Council Tax by Direct Debit.

You will need your council tax customer reference number, your bank's sort code and your bank account number.

I am having difficulty making payments - what should I do?

It is vital that you contact us to discuss the situation straight away.

You may be entitled to a discount and/or exemption or Council Tax support which may help to reduce the amount you have to pay.

What will happen if I do not make the requested payments?

If you do not pay as detailed on your bill then the council will have no alternative but to issue further documentation and take recovery proceedings against you. We will issue one of the following notices:

• reminder
• final notice
• summons

If you haven't brought your account up to date, we will issue a summons and costs will be added to your account. Three weeks after the issue of the summons if there is still a balance outstanding, the council will apply for a liability order at Coventry Magistrates Court.

We may contact you by phone, email or text message to tell you that a payment is late.

Phone messages will originate from: 024 7683 1111, text messages: CoventryCC and emails: email@income.coventry.gov.uk. Please note: this email address does not accept replies or incoming emails.     

The recovery process

The powers for recovery are contained within the Council Tax (Administration & Enforcement) Regulations 1992 (SI 1992 No. 613, as amended).

First reminder

A reminder notice is issued in cases where we have not received instalments by the due date. The reminder will include any instalment(s) that have not been paid and any instalment(s) due within the next 7 days, from the date of issue of the reminder.

If the account is not brought up to date, the right to pay by instalments is withdrawn and a Magistrates court summons will be issued.

If you have paid the amount within 7 days of the reminder you do not need to take any action.

If you are unable to make the payment shown on the reminder then you should contact us, to discuss an alternative payment arrangement.

Second reminder

A second failure to pay will result in the issue of a second reminder. Again, this notice will include any instalment(s) that have not been paid and any instalment(s) due within the next 7 days.

If the account is not brought up to date, the right to pay by instalments is withdrawn and a Magistrates court summons will be issued.

If you have paid the amount within 7 days of the reminder you do not need to take any action.

If you are unable to make the payment shown on the reminder then you should contact us, to discuss an alternative payment arrangement.

Final Notice

A third failure to pay will result in the issue of a final notice. The issue of a final notice means that the right to pay by instalments has been withdrawn and the full charge needs to be paid within 7 days. Failure to pay the balance will result in the issue of a Magistrates court summons.

A final notice will also be issued for accounts where there is no right to pay by instalments, as the amount payable was previously requested on the council tax bill in one lump sum.

If you are unable to pay the balance in full as shown on the final notice then you should contact us, to discuss an alternative payment arrangement.

Summons

If payment has not been received in accordance with the reminder, second reminder and/or final notice then a summons is issued.

If the council tax account is in joint names, each liable person will be issued with a separate summons. If payment (including the £78.50 summons costs) is received in full before the summons hearing takes place no further action will be taken.

If receive a summons you must complete one of the options below before the day of the hearing:

• option 1: pay the full amount that we have requested. This is the Total Amount Now Due figure on the summons. This amount includes the council tax payments you have missed and the court costs for issuing the summons which you must pay. See How to Pay your Council Tax bill for more details
• option 2: make an arrangement with us to pay the Total Amount Now Due over an agreed period of time. You must be willing to discuss your income and expenditure. You should call us on 024 7683 1111 to do this
• option 3: Check whether you qualify for a discount or an exemption on your bill or there has been a change in circumstance that could impact your bill. You must complete the relevant online form to tell us

You do not need to attend the court on the day of the hearing. However, we will still ask the court for a liability order even if we have agreed to a payment arrangement. 

On the day of the hearing

You should only call us on the day of the hearing if we have been unable to resolve your query.

You must call 024 7683 3328 between the hours of 10:00am to 11:30am. This number will be very busy, and you may have to wait a long time before you get to speak to us.   

The court will not admit you on the day of your hearing. If after speaking to the Council, you still wish to go before the court, we will contact them to arrange a specific time and date for you to attend.

Council Tax debt recovery policy

View our debt recovery policy

Make a payment

• Pay online. We accept Visa, Mastercard, Solo, Visa Delta, Visa Electron or Maestro cards
• you can also pay using our 24 hour payment line on 024 7678 7778