Council tax arrears in Birmingham have soared by 15 per cent in the last year with the local authority owed more than £105 million.
Residents in the city now owe more council tax than the whole of Wales where the total arrears are £82 million.
Although, as Britain's , Birmingham's total arrears are bound to be higher than any other council, the amount per dwelling - which stands at £245 - is also the 10th highest in the 海角视频.
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New figures from the Office for National Statistics have also shown that Metropolitan Borough Council is better at collecting outstanding debt than many of its neighbours, taking 55 per cent of money owed from the 2012/13 financial year.
Solihull managed to collect 7.4 per cent, Birmingham 8.6 per cent and Sandwell 8.8 per cent of the outstanding arrears.
Birmingham raises £312 million a year from council tax, about 10 per cent of its annual budget.
According to the council, there are three reasons for the non-collection:
* Citizens moving and absconding where, despite sophisticated financial tracing methods, they cannot be reached.
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* Citizens die owing money and there is no estate from which to claim.
* People being sent to prison and the debt is wiped.
The city council defended its record, saying it is in line with other major cities.
In Liverpool, the rate of arrears per household stands at £450, almost double Birmingham's.
A council spokesman said: "The city council remains committed to continuous improvements in council tax collection to protect the public purse and properly utilises all available methods of collecting arrears.
"It must be pointed out the overwhelming majority of citizens pay their council tax accounts in full and within the prescribed timetables but, unfortunately, there will always be an element of council tax which is non-collectable.
"This is currently in the region of 2.9 per cent in Birmingham which is in line with many other local authorities. The total arrears in some cases goes back to 1997.
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"In total, over the last 17 years, the city would have had in the region of £4.3 billion of council tax to collect after the awarding of council tax benefit. The total arrears outstanding represents 2.3 per cent of this figure."
Two debt collection agencies, Equita and Ross and Roberts, are employed to target those who refuse to pay.
Earlier this year the city council launched a scheme to send officers to homes of those falling behind with their tax bills as an early warning before handing it on to bailiffs.
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