01204385309

I've just stumbled across this after a dodgy rates call this week and would *not* pay either.

If you have signed a contract with IDC I would...

1. Ring the Valuation Office Agency and see i) if an application has indeed been made ii) what decision if any has been made
2. Let the VOA know about how you have been dealt with by IDC if you feel that it less than transparent and professional so that they can note it
3. Ring your local trading standards for advice regarding the demand depending upon the VOA's reply to 1
4. Most solicitors will also give you an hour's worth of free advice

If you have not signed anything go straight to trading standards and lodge a report as Help suggested with the companies investigation branch of the insolvency service who I didn't even know existed! http://www.insolvencydirect.bis.gov.uk/complaintformcib.htm

From what I have read on this page a small claims action on their part would fail and you could in any case lodge a counter-claim at your local court or online. Good luck!

Thankyou for your advice Tom, I have today contacted Bolton trading standards and they have logged my concerns and old me to keep them updated.
I will definetly not now be paying them

Rate Reduction Scams

Small businesses may also fall victim to 'rate reduction' firms who lead businesses to
believe that for a fee they will get their business rates reduced on appeal. Sales
persons often give the impression that no fee is payable until a reduction is obtained,
however the small print in the contract requires a fee when an appeal is logged.

Local authorities are required to collect business rates on behalf of central
government. Businesses are revalued and new rates are applied every five years.
Rogue firms deliberately target businesses whose rates have increased and charge
fees of around £500 to make an appeal against the revaluation.

The best advice to businesses is to say ‘no’ to such firms. Their contracts are often
carefully worded and do not match up to verbal promises the salesperson makes.
You will have no automatic right to cancel once you have signed and paid.

Get advice from the local Valuation Office before you agree to anything. Details of
the appeals procedure are included in a revaluation notification and in the notes
accompanying the rates bill from the local authority. Details are also found on the
valuation office website at www.voa.gov.uk and at www.businesslink.gov.uk. But
remember, if you appeal your rates could go up as well as down.

For further information or assistance regarding your rates bill please contact the
Business Rates Section at Leicester City Council on 0116 252 7005; email:
business.rates@leicester.gov.uk or go to the relevant section on this website.

If you need specific advice regarding the scams
tradaing.standards@leicester.gov.uk or call 0116 252 6599

Hey good for you Trish!

Had a search online and did you know you can easily do your OWN business rates reduction on the VOA site? http://www.2010.voa.gov.uk/rli/en/basic

Never tried this but I'm going to check similar properties nearby and see what their rates are and judge if an appeal is worth lodging. If the scam artists can do it online I'm sure we can and save a fortune on a fee as well as get a reduction http://www.2010.voa.gov.uk/rli/static/HelpPages/English/appeal/index.html

Enjoy your weekend!

Thankyou so much again for your help as I was really really worrying about this and now I feel so safe and secure knowing that this whole thing was just a con and it's a known con' by the authorities, I really hope that the trading standards office deals with these people so they can't keep bullying people and scaring them into paying as they were doing to me and so many others it seems.

Just found this stuff on here and now I'm worried! I signed up with these people last yr and paid them their fees! Since then I've heard nothing from them at all.
I forgot all about them until my wife remembered today and we tried calling but the number is saying it can't connect?
And now I see all this on here so now worried I've been conned!
Can anyone help me and give me advice in what to do, as now I'm worried they have just shut shop!

Cheers Derek

Hi - hope this helps with Ian Davies & ID Consultants

1. http://www.voa.gov.uk/corporate/CouncilTax/CTScams.html

"Warning Council Tax scams

The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) would like to warn taxpayers about unscrupulous individuals and companies that may be operating in your area. They may telephone you or appear personally at your door. Here are some examples of the tactics used to try and get you to part with your money.

Charging an up-front fee and then not challenging your band on your behalf; but blaming the VOA for not taking any action
Insisting you are definitely in the wrong band, when in fact your band is correct.
Saying they are from the local council or VOA and asking for your bank details so they can provide a refund. You may then find that money is taken from your account
Claiming that the VOA charges you to challenge your band, when you can do this for free
Claiming that you must , by law, be represented by an agent to challenge your band, when in fact anyone can do this.
Saying that the VOA wont reduce your band, without the help of an agent, because the government is short of money.
Here are some dos and donts to help you avoid falling victim to these scammers.

DO
Remember that you can have your band checked free of charge by contacting your local Valuation Office*
Ring a cold-callers office to confirm that they are who they say they are
Inform the police if you believe that anyone is impersonating staff from your local council or the VOA
Dial 999 if a cold caller refuses to leave your home
Contact your local Trading Standards Service if you feel you have been the victim of a council tax scam

DONT
Dont give your bank details to anyone that contacts you by phone or who calls in person.
Dont let anyone into your home without seeing appropriate identification
Dont feel under pressure from a cold-caller to pay an immediate up-front fee. Take the time you need to think about it. Whats the rush?
Dont accept cold callers claims about your band without seeing evidence or proof of what they are claiming. There is nothing wrong with being sceptical.
Dont speak to anyone that is reluctant to give you their company address or contact details
If you feel that the band on your home is wrong, then all you have to do is contact your local office and explain why you think it is incorrect. We will also ask you to confirm that the details we hold about your home are correct. We will listen to your views and if we agree that the band is wrong, we will change it. Bands can occasionally go up as well as down."

2. Nearest VOA office to Bolton is below. Check with them to see if ID Consultants have done anything.

http://www.voa.gov.uk/corporate/Contact/Offices/ManchesterOffice.html

Manchester Office

The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) is an executive agency of HM Revenue & Customs. Most, though certainly not all, of the work we do involves compiling and maintaining the rating and council tax lists for England and Wales. It is these lists that form the basis for the business rates and council tax bills issued by local councils. For more information on our work, visit the Valuation Office Agency homepage.

The Manchester office is responsible for valuing properties within Bolton, Bury,Manchester, Rochdale, Salford, Trafford, Wigan, Oldham, Stockport and Tameside billing authorities.

You can contact your local office by calling: 03000 501501

If your enquiry relates to any other HMRC services, or you are looking for your local HMRC tax office, please use the search on www.hmrc.gov.uk.

Address
Manchester Valuation Office
Manchester One
17th Floor
53 Portland Tower
Portland Street
Manchester
M1 3LD
Tel:03000 501501
Fax:03000 503683

3. If the VOA have no record sue them through the small claims procedure or in person at your CC
http://www.courtsni.gov.uk/en-GB/Services/Onl ... spx#smallclaims

4. Report them to Bolton trading Standards who will by now have a fat file on them already:

Bolton Metropolitan Borough Council
Trading Standards Service
Weston House
Weston Street
Bolton
BL3 2AR
Telephone:  (01204) 336586
Fax:  (01204) 336576
E-mail:  trading.standards@bolton.gov.uk

5. Report them to the governments' BIS Company Investigations to get them investigated and closed down:
http://www.insolvencydirect.bis.gov.uk/complaintformcib.htm

Another warning from a local authority:

http://www.tswarrington.co.uk/pdf/ican/315OffersofCouncilTaxReduction.pdf

WARNING: Telephone Call Offering Council Tax Reduction

Trading Standards would like to again alert members to be cautious if receiving a telephone call
from anyone offering to help reduce council tax payments.

Residents have reported receiving a telephone call from a company offering to assist in making a claim
to reduce their council tax banding cost. The caller will have ‘a patter’ they may say they can assist with
making a claim as your property is banded incorrectly.  They may also claim they can help to reduce
your bill if you are the sole occupant. The fact is that there is no need for assistance as anyone can
do this for themselves.  Please do not engage with the caller and do not give out any personal
details.    

If you feel that the band on your home is wrong, then all you have to do is contact the Valuation Office
Agency and explain why you think it is incorrect. You will also be asked to confirm that the details held
about your home are correct. They will listen to your views and if they agree that the band is wrong, will
change it. Bands can occasionally go up as well as down.

To have your council tax band checked free of charge, contact the Valuation Office Agency on 03000
501 501.  Alternatively go to http://www.direct.gov.uk/ scroll down to housing and local services then
click on council tax which will then take you to the correct page.

Please report any incidents of a similar nature to Cheshire Police on 101. Alternatively call Crime
stoppers on 0800 555 111 where you can pass the information on anonymously or use the ‘giving
information form’ on their website www.crimestoppers-uk.org

If you need to report an incident as an emergency please contact the Police on 999.

You can contact your local council to discuss any further issues you may have relating to Council Tax
payments:

• Warrington Borough Council – 01925 44 33 22
• Halton Borough Council – 0303 333 43 00

Please pass this information to family members, friends, neighbours and anyone you think
maybe vulnerable.

For general consumer advice please contact Citizens Advice Consumer Service on 08454 040506 or
visit http://www.adviceguide.org.uk

Go to http://www.tswarrington.co.uk/ to view or download previous iCAN messages

Email: Tradingstandards@warrington.gov.uk

Bolton Council:

http://www.bolton.gov.uk/website/news/pages/Counciltaxscamreturnsagain.asp

Council tax scam returns again

04/03/11

Residents should be on their guard as a council tax scam returns to the borough for the fourth time.

The scam involves fraudsters posing as council staff who are telephoning residents to say they have paid too much council tax and then asking for their bank account details, so that a refund can be processed.

The fraudsters have operated in a number of Greater Manchester boroughs and targeted Bolton several times in the last year. They have now returned to the borough for a fourth time and Trading Standards and the police are receiving a number of complaints from people who have been called by them so far.

Councillor Nick Peel, Executive Member for Housing, Neighbourhoods and Regulation said: “Bolton Council does not run a refund scheme for people who regularly pay their council tax and a phone call of this nature would not be made by our council tax team.

I would urge residents never to give out personal information, unless they know who the caller is and to be on their guard when callers ask for personal details. There is no way of knowing who you are actually speaking to at the time and there is every chance that the caller is a criminal trying to obtain money from your account or trying to obtain your details for identity theft.”

Anyone who receives suspicious calls, or has further information about the scam such as a name, address or telephone number, should report it to Trading Standards on 08454 040506.

Bolton Council:

http://www.bolton.gov.uk/sites/DocumentCentre ... t%202012-13.pdf

Scam alert

Trading Standards advise caution if you receive a call from anyone saying you are in the wrong council tax band or you are entitled to a refund of council tax. The caller will charge a fee and some have given misleading information including false claims that:

• they are from the council or other
official body
• they are working with the police
• it will cost you more to challenge your
tax band on your own
• the council or VOA will not help you
Remember that:
• Nobody can guarantee you a lower
council tax band
• the vast majority of bandings are
correct
• it’s FREE to challenge or enquire about
your council tax band (see page 5)
• these companies do little more than
what you can do for yourself for free
If you think you have been misled, report it to Trading Standards on 08454 040506.

I used to work for them and they didint pay e plus others the y commissions I was owed, always stalling us and talk to us like muppets,  the guy who owns it  just talks crap and thinks he's mr big, constantly moving the targets and walking round like hes a king lol , it's a proper dodgy  setup and all I will say is that they aren't as clean as they make out on the website lol,  can't believe I worked there now after seeing all this on here,

I used to work for them and they didint pay e plus others the y commissions I was owed, always stalling us and talk to us like muppets,  the guy who owns it  just talks crap and thinks he's mr big, constantly moving the targets and walking round like hes a king lol , it's a proper dodgy  setup and all I will say is that they aren't as clean as they make out on the website lol,  can't believe I worked there now after seeing all this on here,

I used to work there too, don't get involved with them, they are a call-centre... Very dodgy indeed.

Hi I'm a freelance  reporter and am currently doing articles on alleged business scams in the uk, if you want to share your personal experiences whether good or bad wth this company then contact me on 07421743443
Cheers Michael

Sorry, just given a number that I've disused for some reason, will add all the correct details tomorrow as new baby is calling and I've just been told its my turn to feed!

Hey, just to confirm all of these details and complaints you have all made about IDC LTD i previously worked for them a few months back and i left as soon as i dug deeper in the company to see what they actually did. I would 100% avoid this company. I left as i dont believe in scamming people, im an honest person who now works for a solicitors and actually helps people instead of causing damage to their finances. Dont all hate on me too much if possible. Just avoid at all costs. If a girl by the name of sam calls feel free to tell her where to shove the contract. Ian and the rest of the staff who know the full story of his business are disgusting human beings. I genuinely feel sorry for you all. Avoid avoid avoid

It has been brought to our attention once again that there has been a few malicious comments posted on this site with regards to I D Consultants Limited. Once again these are unfounded and not clients of our company. With regard to the last comment we can categorically confirm that we have never employed anyone with the name James and surname beginning with P.

If anyone wants to see testimonials from actual clients we again refer you to our website: www.idconsultants.org.uk

Regards

Ian Davies
Company
I D Consultants Limited

Ian do you have no connections with Brittania or Proctor Law then?

Domain name:
       idconsultants.org.uk

   Registrant:
       STUDIO UK

   Registrant type:
       Unknown

   Registrant's address:
       Evans Business Centre
       Manchester Road
       Bolton
       Lancashire
       BL3 2NZ
       United Kingdom

   Registrar:
       Namesco Limited t/a Namesco Ltd [Tag = NAMESCO]
       URL: http://www.names.co.uk

   Relevant dates:
       Registered on: 25-Jan-2012
       Expiry date:  25-Jan-2014
       Last updated:  25-Jan-2012

   Registration status:
       Registered until expiry date.

   Name servers:
       ns0.phase8.net
       ns1.phase8.net
       ns2.phase8.net

   WHOIS lookup made at 08:45:56 25-Sep-2012

--
This WHOIS information is provided for free by Nominet UK the central registry
for .uk domain names. This information and the .uk WHOIS are:

   Copyright Nominet UK 1996 - 2012.

Hi matt,
I am in the same situation they sent me this invoice i am refusing to pay as i have only sent them an email and noy signed a contract they are a scam.
i do not intend paying them all they seem to be doing is asking for money. as they have no signed contract and i have sent emails saying do not carry on they are getting nothing