At least one in five English and Welsh councils’ websites give wrong information to unpaid Carers about their Council Tax discount rights – likely leading fewer to claim

An investigation by MoneySavingExpert.com (MSE) into ‘the councils that couldn’t Care less’ has found that in a spot check, at least 69 councils in England and Wales have information about the live-in Carer Council Tax discount on their websites that incorrectly indicates far fewer people are eligible than really are. This is likely to be putting off some of the millions of unpaid Carers from claiming what they’re legally entitled to.

We checked the online information (websites, PDFs, application forms) of over 200 councils (there are 318 responsible for Council Tax billing in England and Wales) and found that 69 – including seven London boroughs – state incomplete and therefore incorrect criteria. This means a minimum of one in five councils are displaying incorrect info. This discount can knock 25% or 50% off a Council Tax bill – with a 25% discount typically worth £500 a year.

A further 80 councils failed to include ANY easily available information online about the qualifying benefits needed to get the discount.

This is very likely to deter a decent chunk of the up to five million unpaid carers from claiming. Those eligible for this discount must be caring for someone who receives one of several disability benefits – but it’s some of the most common disability benefits that councils are missing from their info. This affects a wide range of people, including those where a parent is looking after an adult child, an adult child looking after a parent, and adult siblings looking after an adult brother or sister.

The likely cause of the problem is many councils haven’t updated their websites since Carer rules changed in 2013

The live-in Carer Council Tax discount means the Carer is disregarded for Council Tax purposes. So, if they were the only person in the house with the person they’re caring for, it’s as if there’s only one person resident, so that household would be eligible for the 25% single person discount (this discount could increase if the person being cared for is eligible for the ‘Severe Mental Impairment’ disregard too).

To qualify for the live-in Carer discount: a) Applicants need to provide at least 35 hours of free care a week to somebody in their household who isn’t a spouse, partner or child under 18.

b) The person being cared for needs to be receiving one of a number of qualifying benefits. Prior to the reforms in 2013, these were:

• Attendance Allowance – higher rate.

• Constant Attendance Allowance – increased amount.

• Disability Living Allowance – care component, higher rate.

• Disablement Pension – increased rate.

Since 2013, it has also included the following – and it is these benefits that councils largely mistakenly excluded:

• Armed Forces Independence Payment – any amount.

• Attendance Allowance – lower rate.

• Disability Living Allowance – care component, middle rate.

• Personal Independence Payment – daily living component, enhanced rate.

• Personal Independence Payment – daily living component, standard rate.

The qualifying benefits needed for the live-in Carer Council Tax discount differ in Scotland, so this has not formed part of our investigation.

The investigation shows a majority of the 69 offending councils wrongly stated that people being cared for on these benefits: - only qualify if they’re being paid the higher rate of Attendance Allowance, Disability Living Allowance and Personal Independence Payment. - do not mention Personal Independence Payment at all. - or, in the worst cases, it’s a combination of these issues, plus more.

MSE was first alerted to the issue by a user who got in touch after telling us they were incorrectly rejected for the discount by their council and said they only managed to successfully claim with help from a specialist charity.

Martin Lewis, founder of MoneySavingExpert, said: “Unpaid carers can’t trust councils’ information about Carers’ Council Tax discounts. All Carers who thought they weren’t eligible after checking councils’ websites should check again (use Carers UK’s help pages). If you did miss out due to councils’ poor info, ask for a backdated discount to the point of first eligibility, though different councils have different rules. “Thirty-five hours a week of unpaid caring is no small feat. This army of up to five million carers provides a silent and often un-thanked backbone that takes a burden off the NHS and care system – reducing the cost to the state.

“While it’s often done out of love, that doesn’t mean it isn’t hard. And while this discount isn’t means-tested, many who are caring, unpaid, for at least 35 hours a week, are almost certainly under a great deal of financial stress. So, the idea that they’re being misled about £100s a year in discounts from their own councils really sticks in the craw. “This is made worse by the fact the main Gov.uk pages about Council Tax (https://www.gov.uk/council-tax) don't list the qualifying benefits for the discount – making it harder for taxpayers in England to work out whether they might be eligible.

“We are writing to all the councils involved to ask them to urgently update their websites and to ensure their internal policies are compliant. I will also be reporting this information lapse to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government. It should work with councils on a clear plan to guarantee that CouncilTax information is clear, accurate and accessible.”

Helen Walker, chief executive at Carers UK, said:

“Unpaid carers provide support worth a staggering £184 billion to the UK economy each year, but this comes at a significant personal and financial cost. They are often at a financial disadvantage because caring for someone can impact your ability to work and additional expenses – such as specialist food and clothing, and higher electricity bills – add to everyday living costs. Nearly half (49%) of unpaid carers have cut back on essentials in the past year and a third (32%) have taken out a loan from the bank, used credit cards or a bank overdraft.

“60% of unpaid carers feel anxious or stressed when they think about their financial situation. Unpaid carers are frequently time poor and exhausted from the amount of administration they have to deal with in their caring roles. It’s simply unacceptable that carers are presented with the wrong information when they are so urgently in need of help. It’s essential that they have the right facts about council tax discount in front of them to help them claim what they’re entitled to. This could be a lifeline for many families, helping to relieve some of the pressure they feel and making an important difference to their ability to make ends meet.”

Further guidance on Council Tax discounts can be found in MSE’s guide and at Carers UK.

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NOTES TO EDITORS

1. The live-in carer Council Tax discount first became law in England and Wales as part of The Council Tax (Additional Provisions for Discount Disregards) Regulations 1992.

2. This was updated in 2013 under The CouncilTax (Additional Provisions for Discount Disregards) (Amendment) Regulations with separate pieces of legislation for England and Wales to include the lower rate of Attendance Allowance and the middle rate of the care component of Disability Living Allowance as qualifying benefits.

3. Also in 2013, Personal Independent Payments were added as qualifying benefits in England and Wales under The Personal Independence Payment (Supplementary Provisions and Consequential Amendments) Regulations 2013.

4. Also in 2013, the Armed Forces Independence Payment was separately added to the list of qualifying benefits in England and Wales by The Armed Forces and Reserve Forces Compensation Scheme (Consequential Provisions: Subordinate Legislation) Order 2013.

5. The estimated saving of £500 a year is if a 25% live-in Carer Council Tax discount is applied to the average band D property Council Tax bill in England and Wales in 2025-26.