Blackburn with Darwen Council has failed to collect more than £11 million in council tax in the past five years new figures show.

Meanwhile, in 2023/24, Pendle Council had a shortfall of more than £2m and Ribble Valley missed out on more than £300,000.

The data comes from Freedom of Information requests made to UK local authorities by Accident Claims Advice.

The replies showed Preston City Council faces the greatest task in Lancashire in recouping unpaid council tax, having lost out on £26 million in the past five years.

Blackburn with Darwen Council missed out on £11.2m worth of funds in the past five years from uncollected council tax.

Residents fell short on their bills by £3.7m in 2023/24, with the debt attributed to 9,356 accounts.

Some £2.3m due in 2022/23 is still not collected, while the deficit from unpaid 2021/22 bills sits at £2.1m.

In 2023/24 Pendle Borough Council failed to collect £2.3m and Ribble Valley Borough Council £337,596.

For those who miss paying their council tax and do not qualify for financial support, the council’s enforcement measures start with issuing a reminder and can result in a court summons.

AccidentClaimsAdvice.org.uk provides a dedicated advice service for people concerned about receiving a council tax summons running a 24-hour free helpline.

Blackburn with Darwen Council's finance director, Dean Langton, said: “Uncollected council tax at the financial year end is not lost - it is debt that is owing and still remains collectable.

"The council continues to take action to collect outstanding debts where they are considered still collectable, whether the debt relates to current or previous financial years.

"Given the prolonged financial impact of the pandemic and the continuing cost of living crisis, collection of council tax is challenging and we aim to be as understanding as possible to people’s financial situations.

"On average, the collection rate for the last three years has increased to 97 per cent and is expected to increase further so that almost all the council tax due is collected."

A Ribble Valley Council spokesperson said: “The authority collected 99.12 per cent of the amount due in 2023/24, which was the fifth highest collection rate nationally.

"We will continue to collect council tax arrears from 2023/24 and our eventual collection rate is expected to be around 99.9 per cent."

Karen Spencer, Pendle Council’s director of resources, said: “We offer a range of support to customers who are struggling to make payments.

“The vast majority of cases can be resolved by customers talking to us about any difficulties they may be facing, so we can put the right support in place.

"However, we will use all avenues available to us to collect outstanding debt because if we don’t, the cost is passed on to other council taxpayers.”