Thousands of people in Milton Keynes left furious - and broke - after council tax direct debit is taken from their bank account five days early

People all over MK have been left fuming and broke after MK Council has taken their January council tax payment five days too early.

This has caused many workers who do not get paid until the end of the month to be overdrawn and facing bank charges. Others have been left with no money for food.

The Citizen is awaiting an full explanation from MK Council as to why the payment has been taken so early.

But a council spokesman said this morning: “This is an error and we’re working on a statement”.

The blunder is thought to have happened because of the forthcoming New Year’s Day Bank holiday, which means payments cannot be taken on January 1.

But members of the public are claiming it is a breach of direct debit rules to take payment early. It is normal to take the payments on the earliest possible day after the bank holiday, not before.

One person wrote on social media: “I used to process DD’s in my old job. They cannot take them early as it’s in breach of the DD guarantee. “

Other people have contacted their banks and successfully got the money refunded.

The blunder has meant people have paid direct debits for council in December, the most expensive month of the year. For some, it means they have no money at all for food or heating.

One council tax payer said: “Many people are already struggling with the cost of living crisis and the fact that payments have (erroneously?) been taken ahead of due dates means that they may incur bank charges as a result, together with the added stress of having to sort it out and reclaim.”

Another said: “Some people don’t get paid until the last working day of the month, which for December, is tomorrow. A payment that was due on Tuesday being taken today means they’re potentially overdrawn now.

"Of course that’s an issue, not everyone has spare money to fall back on one day before payday. The council are at fault here and have broken the terms of the direct debit scheme.“MK Council must accept responsibility and rectify the mistake. “