Fife Council

I have just received a threatening letter from Fife's Council Tax Department, informing me that if I don't pay my account in full, I will be taken to court. I sent them a letter 6 weeks ago informing them I was moving home and I requested a final bill. I stopped payments as arranging a refund would be a nightmare when living in Switzerland. Their excuse for this lack of joined-up-thinking was twofold. Firstly, there was a backlog in their department that dealt with people moving home. Secondly, the department that deals with payments is different to the department that deals with house moving - they are autonomous, and it seems, unable to communicate with each other.

The end result? I will get three bills in the post. I will receive a bill for the whole year as if I was not moving, I will receive a bill for the period up to the 20th December and another from the 21st December to 20th January. The fist bill I have to ignore, the second bill I have to pay and the third bill is for my records. All of these will be sent to Switzerland, at considerable cost to the council (why they just couldn't sent me a final bill, as requested, is beyond me). The problem is, they insisted I paid them on the phone, there and then. So even though I am to 'ignore' the first bill and 'pay' the second bill, I have in fact paid the first bill and will have to claim back my money with the second. I still don't know what the 3rd bill is for.

Joined-up-thinking at its best. And you know what - it's my taxes that pay for it.