Up to 20,000 people in Glasgow have been sent a summary warrant demanding they pay their outstanding council tax plus a 10% penalty.
Glasgow City Council said it had sent out the demands to those who had a history of "late or non-payment".
A spokeswoman said: "While we don't wish to be seen as heavy handed, we have an obligation to collect outstanding council tax."
Some people may have the warrant cancelled if their payment was late.
The council spokeswoman added: "A number of people may have received this letter because payment for their October instalment did not reach us until after the due date of the 28th.
"In these cases the council will cancel the summary warrant and the letter can be ignored."
Glasgow has the worst collection rate in Scotland.
The Shelter Scotland website said a summary warrant was a "certificate from the sheriff court stating the amount of council tax you owe and authorising action to be taken to recover the money owed from you".
The money has to be paid to sheriff officers and those who have received a copy of the warrant must pay an automatic penalty of 10%.
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