THE total debt written off by West Devon Borough Council over the latest six month period was £203,000, almost double what it was the previous year.

It’s down to an increase in the number of larger council tax and business rate debts over £5,000 because of people and businesses becoming insolvent.

The increase in debt reflected difficult trading conditions and financial issues during the covid pandemic and cost of living crisis, members of the council’s hub committee were told.

The figure covers the six months to March 2024. During the same time frame the previous year the amount of debt written off was £107,000.

Debts are only recommended for write off once all efforts have been made to recover them.

They may have occurred through insolvency or where someone has died or cannot be traced.

The council’s finance officer can write off debts up to £5,000 and these totalled £71,000 in 2023/24, a similar figure to the previous year.

Permission needs to be sought from the ‘hub committee’ to write off debts of more than £5,000, which totalled £132,000.

There has been an increase in writing off debt down to the council’s own errors or that of the department of work and pensions (DWP). Housing benefit overpayments amounted to £9,000, compared to £965 the previous year.

This money isn’t legally recoverable, so the council has no choice but to write it off.

As part of the revenue and benefits services review, a new role of training and quality assurance officer has been created which should result in more accurate processing and a reduction in write offs of non-recoverable rates in the future, said Cllr Chris Edmonds (Con, Tamarside), lead member for performance and resources.

The collection rate for council tax is 98 per cent, the same as last year which put the council in the top quartile nationally for 2022/23 when it was ranked 26 out of 181 district councils. National collection rates for 2023/24 have not yet been published.

The business or non-domestic rates collection rate would have been 99 per cent for 2023/24 had it not been for one outstanding balance of £128,000 which reduced the rate to just under 98 per cent.

“This is still a good performance in the current economic climate,” said Cllr Edmonds.. “Recovery action is still ongoing regarding the outstanding debt.”

By Alison Stephenson