Stoke-on-Trent City Council has written off more than £1.8 million of 'irrecoverable' debt this year.

The council's debt write-offs in 2023/24 includes £839,982 in unpaid council tax, £268,942 in business rates and £487,623 in overpaid housing benefit.

These write-offs, approved by officers under delegated powers, related to individual debts of less than £25,000 – larger debts can only be written off by cabinet members. A council report explains that debts are written off when they are considered irrecoverable or where the cost of recovery is 'uneconomical'.

The report states: "It should be noted that the council will only write off debt as a last resort after all recovery routes have been exhausted. Whilst every effort will be made to help those wanting to clear debts, there is a zero tolerance approach to those with no intention of paying outstanding debt; all options of collection, including committal, will be used as appropriate to collect outstanding debt."

More than half of the written-off debt related to cases of bankruptcy, liquidation or dissolution, or where the debtor has died (Nub News).

More than half of the written-off debt related to cases of bankruptcy, liquidation or dissolution, or where the debtor has died, meaning the money can no longer be collected. The debtor absconding is another common reason for debt being written off.

The council retains records of the debts so that they can be pursued if recovery becomes possibly in future. Irrecoverable debts of less than £25,000 are usually written off on a quarterly basis, but the report says this has not been possible this year due to 'administering government grants'.

A Stoke-on-Trent City Council spokesperson said: "Business owners declaring bankruptcy and people passing are often the factors affecting the debt write off. Each year the city council is faced with circumstances like this beyond its control when it comes to recovering money owed.

"We have financial advice and support available for people struggling, and we accept people have challenges in their lives. However our services follow strict protocol when an outstanding debt gets within a certain timeframe, and debt is written off in a systematic way in specific circumstances and after all legal avenues to recover amounts due have been exhausted."

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