Clearance crisis

According to the DistrictMail clearances are now taking an average of eight weeks to process from a previous average of seven days. The problems started with the implementation of the new R300-million billing system in August. Examples include the owners' names being wrong, different rates being quoted for the same property and annual rates being shown as zero-zero-zero.

Chris Theron, spokesman for the Property Law Committee of the Cape Law Society, says the city receives 334 rates clearances a day of which only 280 can be processed. The rest are added to the backlog which, as at the 21 of November, was over 2100. Chris de Vries, interim customer care manager in the revenue department, says that the city is going to put drastic measures in place and should be up to date within four weeks.

Article in the DistrictMail