Recovery Officer Council Tax and Business Rates

• You must be UK based and have the right to work in the UK.
• This is a temporary role. Please do not apply if you are seeking a permanent position.

• Educated to GCSE level (or equivalent), including English and Maths at grade C or above.
• Understanding of general office procedures.
• Must have local authority council tax and business rates recovery experience.
• Experience of providing service to customers making sure their needs are understood, met, and managed.
• Experience of administering Council Tax, Business Rates, or experience of working in a financial, collection or debt recovery environment.
• Experience of recovering debts and the ability to advise appropriately customers with financial difficulties.
• Excellent negotiation skills to make realistic repayment plans with customers.
• Strong IT skills including Microsoft packages or equivalent (e.g. G Suite, Adobe Pro).
• Ability to interpret legislation and communicate information to non-specialists both verbally and in writing.
• Able to manage a busy workload while remaining calm, meeting deadlines and exceeding targets.

This is a proactive role focused on engaging directly with customers through calls and outreach. A key responsibility is managing the collection of outstanding payments for Council Tax and Business Rates. You will negotiate repayment plans where possible, and take appropriate recovery actions when agreements cannot be reached.

Additionally, you will assess cases for legal enforcement, make referrals to Advice Centres, and manage write-offs when necessary. Your ability to balance customer engagement with effective financial management will be crucial to success in this role.

• Processing incoming data in accordance with legislation and Council Policies to ensure the collection of Council Tax, Business Rates is made correctly.
• Interrogating and cross referencing on all database systems that are available to verify liability and assist in the collection of monies due.
• Following the recovery procedures to decide the best action to take to collect the money due.
• Initiating contact and follow up with customers who have fallen behind with payments.
• Obtaining up to date financial information to maximise customer income and negotiate repayment plans.
• Maximising take up of benefits, discounts, exemptions and reliefs for those entitled to them.
• Escalating cases to Senior Recovery Officers where normal recovery tools are ineffective or are challenged.