‘Increase in bills has left me struggling’

Q. My gas and electricity direct debit has increased from £60 to £220 a month. Even though my husband and I work full time we cannot afford this and are struggling. I understand that this is a popular topic at the moment and that every household within Scotland is affected by this but I am wondering if you can offer any advice on what to do.

A. If you pay for your gas or electricity by direct debit, the payments will usually be based on an estimate of the amount of energy you’ll use over a year. Your payments will increase if you use more energy than the supplier has estimated. You might also have to pay for the extra energy you used.

Your supplier has to let you know about a payment increase before it happens - this is known as the direct debit guarantee.

If they don’t, you should complain to your supplier. It is important to regularly submit meter readings to your supplier, this will enable them to set your direct debit at the right level and you will be less likely to owe them extra money. You can challenge the increased direct debit payment amount with your supplier if you disagree with it.

Ask your supplier to justify how they calculated the new amount. They must explain clearly how they reached the figure they want to charge, and give you the meter readings they used.

When you look at the meter readings, check them against the meter readings on your bill to see if they are the same. Remember that your usage will be higher in the winter months. If you’re struggling to afford your gas and electricity bills, contact your supplier to discuss ways to pay what you owe them. Your supplier has to help you come to a solution. You should try to negotiate a deal that works for both of you.

Q. I have been sent a “charge for payment” regarding unpaid council tax from years ago, I think it was for the year 2008/2009. I am definitely liable for the council tax but I am sure I was due a council tax reduction because I was on a low income, I am embarrassed to say that I did ignore previous letters from the council. I am not sure what this charge for payment means and what I do next.

A. There is a time limit of 20 years within which a local authority in Scotland can apply to the sheriff court for a summary warrant to enable it to take action to recover outstanding council tax. This time limit runs from the date of the final demand, or from the last time that the debt was acknowledged by you. You have to ensure that you are liable for the council tax bill and this can be done by checking the bill and ensuring that it is under your name and an address that you lived at.

If you are disputing the address you will have to prove that you did not live at the billed address. A charge for payment in Scotland is a legal document that demands debtors to pay money that they owe. In Scotland charge for payments are served to debtors by Sheriff Officers. Once you are served a charge for payment you have 14 days to pay the debt in full before further enforcement action is taken against you (wages arrestment).

It is advisable to check your liability for the council tax bill as quickly as possible whilst informing the debt management company (acting on behalf of the local authority) of what you are doing- they may or may not put your account on hold but legally they do not have to.

It would be best to try and offer a payment plan so that you are paying something to your debt and this will be agreed with both you and the debt management company – they may ask you to fill out an income and expenditure sheet if you cannot come to an agreement.

If you have no money to offer the debt management company you may have to seek specialist, free debt advice for further guidance.

Q. I broke down at the side of the road near my house recently and I called my insurance company who arranged for a local recovery company to come out and assist. The recovery driver could not fix the car and towed it away to be fixed in the garage. I got the car back that evening.

The next day I went to use the car and discovered that it was bashed and I contacted the recovery company directly who did not accept liability and stated that one of their drivers would not do that. I have also contacted my insurance company who I am still awaiting a reply from. Is there anything else I could do?

A. It would be your insurance company who would be responsible for investigating this and rectifying the situation as they sourced the recovery company as part of your car insurance (breakdown recovery). If you feel that the insurance company are not doing this quick enough or you are not satisfied with the service that you are being provided with then you would in the first instance be following the insurance companies’ complaints procedure.

The Citizens Advice Scotland have template letters on their website that you may use if you are not sure what to right and they can be edited to suit your situation.

You would be sending them a Breach of Contract – making time of the essence and giving them 14 days to respond to your initial complaint.

Unfortunately, if they do not respond within this time you would then have to escalate your complaint to the second stage. Whatever you do, do not cancel or miss a payment towards your insurance policy as this will make it nul and void.

Q. Before my partner and I married we made a prenuptial agreement on how our assets and private pensions should be divided – we sought specialist legal advice on this.

Our relationship has broken down and we are both seeking to separate and eventually divorce. My partner now wants part of my work’s pension which is worth a lot of money, however this is not what is stipulated in the prenuptial. Can they ask for this and is their claim legally enforceable?

A. A prenuptial agreement is a formal written agreement made before a marriage which records the wishes of both partners about how the assets owned before the marriage will be divided if the marriage comes to an end. It may also say what should happen to the assets acquired during the marriage.

In Scotland, prenuptial agreements are generally thought to be legally enforceable by the Scottish courts, although careful wording is required to ensure this.

A client should seek specialist legal advice before entering into a prenuptial agreement.

One of the issues that should be discussed with the legal adviser is what steps the client could take to ensure that there is evidence that the agreement was not signed under duress.

This evidence could be used at a later date if the other partner tries to claim that it was signed under duress.

■PLEASE NOTE: Rutherglen & Cambuslang Citizens Advice Bureau is open for telephone / e-mail advice on Monday to Friday from 9.30am to 3pm.