Council Tax Enforcement: Clear Evidence of Warrant Requirements Revealed

What do we have here?
Internal guidance used by the Ombudsman when assessing complaints about Council Tax enforcement — and within it, unmistakable confirmation that a Liability Order and a Warrant are two different documents, each serving different legal purposes.

This distinction is often ignored or blurred by councils and enforcement agents, but here it is, written in their own procedures.

📄 What the Guidance Shows

The Ombudsman’s internal material clearly acknowledges:

  • A Liability Order is not a warrant.
  • A Warrant is required for enforcement action.
  • They are two separate documents.
  • Different powers apply to each one.

They even outline means of entry and enforcement steps — none of which list a Liability Order as granting authority to enter premises.

In short:
They have effectively exposed themselves bang to rights.

📘 Extract From the Internal Enforcement Guidance

Here is the relevant procedural text describing how enforcement must take place:

Certification Complaints

A complaint that someone is not fit to hold an Enforcement Agent certificate must be made under Civil Procedure Rule 84.20, commonly called a “Form 4 Complaint.”

Before an Enforcement Agent Is Instructed

  • A local authority must hold a warrant before an EA can act:
    • From a magistrates’ court for local taxation debts, or
    • From the Traffic Enforcement Centre for parking/traffic debts.
  • This warrant includes the original debt plus the costs of obtaining it.
  • All resulting enforcement actions remain under the control of the local authority, not the court.
  • For Council Tax, paragraph 45A requires the authority to give the debtor 14 days’ notice before instructing an EA.
  • Councils usually warn debtors after a liability order is made that the case will be passed to enforcement, with costs added.
  • For business rates, this step may be omitted.
  • For parking, it is unnecessary due to the extensive prior correspondence.

Compliance Stage

Under Fee Regulations 5(1)(a), the compliance stage covers everything from:

➡️ The EA receiving the warrant,
to
➡️ Before the first physical visit.

Key requirements:

  • A Notice of Enforcement must be issued 7 clear days before taking control of goods.
    (Clear days exclude: issue date, receipt date, Sundays, Bank Holidays.)
  • The notice must meet the requirements in the Control Regulations (Para 7) and the Certification Regulations, including the payment deadline.
  • The law only requires the notice to be issued, not physically served.
  • At this stage EAs typically attempt phone, letter, or instalment arrangements, trace missing debtors, and handle correspondence.

🔗 Official Guidance for Your Own Research

For those wishing to verify this information:

📘 Taking Control of Goods – National Standards
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5a7d635aed915d269ba8a5a7/taking-control-of-goods-national-standards.pdf

📙 Guidance on Enforcement of Council Tax Arrears
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5a74b574e5274a3f93b48291/Guidance_on_enforcement_of_CT_arrears.pdf

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