DOES anyone know why Thurrock Council has to bully people with regard to council tax payments?

I telephoned them recently to say that my payment for October would be late by a couple weeks due to not having the money.

I am self employed as a gardener and the weather and rising fuel costs have made things difficult.

I was trying to ask for a little help and all I got was a non-caring official. All he could say was: "Not our problem. You must pay by the specified date or we will terminate your right to pay by instalments."

But don’t these people realise if we could pay the full amount we wouldn’t need instalments?

And surely any normal person when being told "I’m sorry can’t pay until next week as I haven’t got money due to not getting work” would realise that if a person can’t pay the instalment, how can they find the balance of the full amount?

I was so annoyed when the guy said court action would be taken against me. He said they would be sending me a bill for the full payment, plus the charges for a summons.

I wonder about these court charges. Court charges that probably don’t apply. How many people have had notification of so-called court charges but never been before the magistrates?

It is not as if I am refusing to pay and over last years have always paid. I must admit not always on their date but I’ve done it by the end of the month.

So I feel, and probably other people in my situation feel the same, that as long as each month is paid irrespective of what day and as long as by the specified date of January 2009 there is no arrears for the Council to chase up.

What is their problem apart from some stupid rule?

I have customers who pay by cheque and some pay the following week for my work. Am I complaining as long as I get paid?

I bet there are a lot of pensioners who probably go without food or heating to make the said date whereas if the Council were more flexible people could manage better. Some weeks you have money, some weeks you struggle.

We all go through it.

So I have lost my right to pay by instalments even though it’s still October and next payment isn’t due until November. So am I really in arrears?

It’s about time we, the people of the borough, stood together and stopped this bullying tactic of Thurrock Council and got them to make things a little easier for those of us who do pay our way. Is that too much to ask?

We are actually paying these petty bureaucrat’s wages. Don’t they realise they are playing with people’s lives by adding stress to those who are already in a stressful situation simply trying to survive.

Peter Bristow,
Humber Avenue,South Ockendon.