This year’s bad debt write off in this area totals almost £370,000 from some 1,600 accounts.
North Lanarkshire Council’s enterprise and communities service recorded its lowest debt-write off in three years, but this has been combined with a write-off for businesses in Cumbernauld Town Centre.
In the financial year 2024-2025 the council issued invoices for £41.5 million relating to building cleaning, vehicles, waste collection and disposal, burials, land rental, property repairs and charges for owner/occupiers, almost half of the £109 million it invoiced for in total during this period.
This year’s bad debt write off in this area totals almost £370,000 from some 1,600 accounts, with almost all of these owing more than £500. Most of this money was considered uneconomical to pursue further, with 1,000 accounts flagged as such while another in 500 cases it was determined that all viable means of recovery had been exhausted.
This was still lower than the figures recorded in the last three years, with a £500K peak seen in 2023.
However, the council has owned The Centre Cumbernauld since 2023 and as of July 2025 it was owed arrears of £1.2 million in rents and service charges, of which almost £127,000 has been deemed uncollectable due to issues with ten debtors or businesses.
Half of these companies are now dissolved, one went into liquidation and four cases were considered uneconomical to pursue.
Additionally, the council is using help received from the Scottish Government to write off almost £150,000 in school meal debt accrued since 2023.
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