DEBTS worth nearly £600,000 have been written off by Herefordshire Council - with unpaid business rates making up much of the total.
New figures show that between November and March, the council wrote off £437,000 in debts over £2,000 - the threshold that requires a report from the chief financial officer.
Over the same period, £152,000 worth of debts under £2,000 were written off, taking the overall total to £589,000.
Debts written off by the council represent a very low proportion of income collected with council tax raising £81 million and business rates £45 million.
The council's finance procedure rules stipulate that authorisations for writing off debt over £20,000 mean the chief finance officer seeking agreement from the relevant cabinet for resources.
Five cases came into that category between November-March including:
- £169,000 in business rates due from four companies that went into receivership with no monies available for distribution to creditors.
- £32,000 relating to council tax owed on a number of properties due to the bankruptcy of the landlord.
Where debts of over £2,000 were involved the council wrote off:
- 30 cases related to business rates (of which 50 per cent goes to central government) worth £328,000.
- 11 cases of unpaid council tax together worth £55,000.
- Five cases representing £30,000 of "general debt".
- Seven cases of benefit overpayment totalling £24,000.
Debts are only written off once full debt recovery processes are completed, occasionally debt previously written off becomes payable if the debtors circumstances change.
Though the council works with statutory bodies, legal processes can take months, even years, to conclude before a write off is sanctioned.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel