Council Tax payment methods

[Roulade]

I currently pay my council tax in cash at the Post Office each month.

As I only just remembered I'd missed this month's payment (9:30pm, Saturday 3rd) I obviously can't pay it at the Post Office until Monday 5th. So I wondered if I could pay it at the PayPoint newsagents I pay many other bills. Naturally, the Southwark Council website is useless enough to not even say you can use the Post Office let alone anywhere else, so can anyone tell me what places accept Council Tax payments and are there any charges?

And if I pay at a PayPoint or wherever over the weekend or evening, is that any different to the Council from me waiting until the next working day at the Post Office?

I think the Council Tax is the only reason I go to a Post Office anymore, and the queues are always long and slow, so I'd love to go somewhere else regardless of my immediate rush.

[smartk2]

its all here on this page. How to pay council tax

You can pay online 24 hrs a day if you have a debit/credit card. I guess you can't pay at PayPoint locations as its not mentioned as being an option

[TopTree]

Most PayPoint shops will take C-Tax payments: Co-op LLane does:

[Roulade]

smartk2 Wrote:

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> its all here on this page. How to pay council tax

No it isn't. As I wrote in my first post, that page doesn't even tell you it can be paid at a Post Office (which I already do), let alone anywhere else. That page only lists official Southwark Council payment offices. The fact you've inferred it cannot be paid at a PayPoint (which TopTree does) just highlights how useless the site is.

Thanks to TopTree, I'll go to my usual newsagents in the morning. Bit late to go tonight.

[Betterat50m]

Make sure you do Roulade, it would appear that a large percentage of people who work for the tax department at Southwark are incompetent, you may be perceived as a late or non payer :)

[Willard]

Direct Debit.

Letting the techno do the work.

[Roulade]

Betterat50m Wrote:

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> it would appear that a

> large percentage of people who work for the tax

> department at Southwark are incompetent

Tell me about it. I had a relative living in a council flat die, and despite the council being fully aware of it, Council Tax demands and eventually a summons kept being sent to them. Numerous phone calls were made, and I got bounced from person to person, many of whom worked in completely unrelated council offices and had absolutely no idea why I was referred to them! On one occasion, the person on the phone said they couldn't talk to me as I wasn't the person named on the Council Tax bill. This was after I'd started the call explaining clearly what I was phoning about. After explaining again I was asked whether the person on the bill could come to the phone to officially give permission for this Council employee to talk to me on their behalf! When I was asked if the relative was with me now, I nearly sarcastically said "No, they're in the cemetery right now", but given how gormless they'd been so far, I suspected I'd only make things worse by prompting them to ask to call back when the relative had returned...

Eventually, I did the only thing that gets results with Southwark Council - I walked into the relevant office (Peckham Library) and spoke face to face with a human who couldn't get rid of me or palm me off with other contacts etc.

As for my experiences dealing with the housing office... I'll keep those anecdotes for either a best-selling book or inspiration for a new BBC sitcom.

The two year delay in sending out Southwark grave deeds doesn't reflect well on them as a Council either...

[acm]

.

[Undisputedtruth]

acm Wrote:

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> My sympathies for your ordeal, Roulade.

>

> Of course, we cannot possibly tie your experiences

> in with the public sector strike thread, in which

> all public sector workers are so precious to

> society that I should be forced continue to pay

> for their completely unsustainable pensions, at

> the same time as my wages are decreasing and my

> pension is dropping through the floor.

>

> So I won't.

Public Sector should start removing overpaid consultants from their payrolls.

[peterstorm1985]

Which overpaid consultants would those be exactly?

[Undisputedtruth]

http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/228744

[Pugwash]

Unfortunately, Southwark Council uses call centre staff for many of their departments who are employed by contractors not Southwark Council - most of those I have speoken to are equally as bad.

Also there is a service offered by the Registry Office that when you register a death, you can request help in sorting out other things such as council tax, rent, etc. Apparently they are very efficient.

[the-e-dealer]

I just looked at the the website. Although it doesn't mention Post Offices it DOES offer two other ways to pay. ONline on the Site or by ringing an automated service. Since you already know it can be paid at Post offices I would have though this was useful information.

[Roulade]

the-e-dealer Wrote:

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> I just looked at the the website. Although it

> doesn't mention Post Offices it DOES offer two

> other ways to pay. ONline on the Site or by

> ringing an automated service. Since you already

> know it can be paid at Post offices I would have

> though this was useful information.

No, otherwise I wouldn't have left that page to come here and ask about PayPoints (which it also fails to mention). As I said in the first post, I pay by cash, which means the methods you mention aren't useful to me.

Anyway, the bill was paid in my usual PayPoint newsagent yesterday, and I'll continue paying it there from now on. If I'd known you could pay Council bills in PaypPoints sooner, I'd have saved god knows how many hours of my life queuing at packed post offices.

[the-e-dealer]

"No it isn't. As I wrote in my first post, that page doesn't even tell you it can be paid at a Post Office (which I already do), let alone anywhere else. That page only lists official Southwark Council payment offices". - NO it lists 3 methods that don't suit you that's all- You don't say you can ONLY pay by cash only that you do at the Post office. cheer up get a bank card.

[Roulade]

the-e-dealer Wrote:

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> it lists 3 methods that don't suit you

As I said, I know all that as I came here for help after looking that very web page. I got help quickly from TopTree and paid the bill, so don't worry about it. And getting a bank card is yet another non-solution from you as it (obviously) wouldn't get this month's Council Tax paid in time, which is what I posted about.

All paid, no problem, one month left to go. I'm cheerful.