Almost 240,000 people were taken to court in the West Midlands over unpaid council tax debt last year, according to an investigation by the GMB union. The union sent freedom of information requests to all local authorities in the region responsible for collecting council tax, revealing that 239,116 individuals were summoned to court in the financial year 2024/25.
An astonishing £490 million is owed to West Midlands councils in unpaid council tax, averaging approximately £2,050 per person. The findings will be discussed as part of a Local Government special report delivered to GMB’s annual congress in Blackpool on Tuesday, June 9.
Other results from the investigation include 182,736 accounts currently in council tax arrears and 154,807 accounts that have had debt management proceedings launched against them.
“These horrifying figures show our council tax system is completely broken,” said Rachel Harrison, GMB’s National Secretary. “Not only is the banding system woefully out of date, but forcing cash-strapped councils to pursue 240,000 people through the courts just to make ends meet can’t be the right way to do business.”
Harrison added: “Austerity left deep scars on all our public services, which will last a generation or more. Meanwhile, the lack of authority funding often means low pay for the people we rely on to look after our loved ones, to take our rubbish, to keep our towns and cities running. To fix all this, we need more guaranteed central government funding, progress on council tax reform so the richest pay their share, and changes to Business Rates so that authorities get more to regenerate our high streets.”
