Just over half pay Household Charge in Fingal

Only 51 per cent of people in Fingal have paid the household charge despite reports of a last minute rush to pay the fee before the March 31 deadline.

Northside People has learned that as of May 1 just 51.3 per cent of those eligible for the charge had paid the

?¬100 in the Fingal catchment area.

The figure represents 46,322 households who have complied with the charge compared to a total of 90,286 people who were eligible for the controversial fee.

The compliance rate is expected to average at 50 per cent in other catchment areas. However, the Local Government Management Services Board (LGMSB) said it was still too early to confirm figures some seven weeks after the deadline for payments passed.

“We still have a substantial backlog of payments to be processed,

? a spokesperson for the LGMSB told Northside People

“We have had to double our staff in an effort to get through the backlog.

“However, we don’t expect to be able to give a county by county breakdown for another two to three weeks.

?

The LGMSB spokesperson assured that while there was still a significant number of postal bags of payments to be processed, it has been possible to keep track of when payments were made.

“We know what date the bags came in so it is not a case that those who paid the fee by the deadline will incur a late payment fine,

? she concluded.

All outstanding accounts automatically incurred a

?¬10 charge after the March 31 deadline. For each month that goes by an extra e1 in interest will be added to the late penalty. Therefore, householders who have not paid the Household Charge owe

?¬112 in May and will owe

?¬113 in June.