Council Tax Bands

We've not heard of this happening often, though there was big news in October 2015 when it happened to a street in Hull.

One neighbour was in band B, with all other similar houses in the street in band A. She challenged her banding, and instead of her council tax being lowered, all her neighbours' council tax bands were raised, putting them all in band B.

If this happens to you, and you believe it's wrong, you need to start your own challenge under the normal system. However, since the neighbours check won't work if you've all been revalued, you'll need to rely on the valuation.

Again, you can't just use the calculator above to estimate your home's 1991 value and present that as evidence. But, if you can get evidence of sale prices of your (or similar homes in your street) from 1991, this would be strong evidence with which to make your case.

If you think you have a case, follow the steps to challenge your banding. You'll likely need to be prepared to take it to the Valuation Tribunal, as the Valuation Office Agency has already decided that your property should be upbanded.

According to Tony Travers, local government specialist from the London School of Economics, the obligation is on central government to make up the cost of substantial rebanding. The exact relationship is complex, but it does mean the cost is spread. Rather bizarrely, some individual councils may actually gain from this, as they get bigger subsidies if more people are in lower bands.

Let's put it in perspective. The whole point of this is to get your money back for council tax you've been overpaying for years. The more people who get revalued, the more pressure there will be on the Government to do a nationwide revaluation and ensure everyone is paying a fair amount.

Northern Ireland uses a completely different system to council tax so this is irrelevant. Wales does have a council tax system, but a nationwide revaluation was been done there in 2003, and so errors are less likely and less longstanding (though you can still challenge if you think it's wrong). So this guide is focused on England and Scotland.

The bandings were assessed on 1 April 1991, and haven't been reassessed since then (except in Wales), so of course, for many people, they're out of date. For example, you could have had a nightclub built next to your house or it's been turned into flats (though you could also be paying too little if your home's improved!) or property values in your specific neighbourhood have dropped compared to elsewhere.

In fact, this is the traditional reason for rebanding your home. Until we launched the check and challenge system, this was the basis for the vast majority of appeals. So yes, in these circumstances you can still challenge your band.

Some firms may claim this, yet they have no more influence or power than you do – so do consider whether you could just cut out the middle man and do it yourself.

For most literate and numerate people with access to the web, council tax reclaiming is a straightforward process. While it takes a bit of time and effort, all the resources above should give you most of what you need to do it yourself.

If you need help though, the options are a lawyer or 'claims handler' as they're commonly advertised. But they are expensive and at best will take around a third of the money that you're owed. In general, there's simply no need to use a company. This site's stance is that it's easy and more lucrative to use the info above to do it yourself.

Yet there are times it may be suitable, such as for those with genuine financial phobia, lack of web literacy, or mental health issues. If that's the case, it's important to check out who you would use. If you are going to use a lawyer or claims handler, ensure you…

Never pay anything upfront!

There are some companies who will offer to carry out your claim for an upfront fee but if the company is not open and upfront about its fees, which as a rule of thumb shouldn't be much more than 25% of what you win, then don't go there. Also feel free to ask for references from other satisfied customers, which it should be happy to do if kosher.

All claims firms must be regulated for claims management activities and will have a reference to check (eg, CRM1234) on the Ministry of Justice database. Avoid anyone not on this list.

Council tax pays for local services such as policing, education and waste management. It replaced the notorious poll tax in 1993, although Northern Ireland still uses the even older rates system. Whether council tax is more reasonable is a topic of debate.

Be it a house, flat, mobile home or houseboat, council tax is applicable to all personal dwellings. But don't assume all households pay the same amount.

You pay council tax if you live somewhere, regardless of whether you are the tenant or owner. Which means if you rent, it's certainly worth going through the system to see. Before you challenge your band, courtesy dictates you should discuss it with your landlord first.

To rush through the valuation in 1991, it was often outsourced to relevant bodies such as estate agents. They were simply given a list of the size of properties and asked to assess them from the outside. Within the industry they became known as 'second-gear valuations', as, quite literally, agents stayed in their cars and drove past in second gear, allocating bands.

One estate agent confessed to us: "We were on deadline, we had to do 400 homes a day, working off a list. I was in a rural area, so often we couldn't even see the properties and just had to do a best guess. The system would've worked if the rebanding was done every five years."

Yet it wasn't. Bands haven't been revalued since, so it's no surprise so many are wrong.

There is no obligation on you to do anything or tell anyone. Latest statistics show that 12,380 properties were put into a lower band and only 20 into a higher band – suggesting that most people don't say anything if they think they're in too low a band.

Whether you want to declare it and ask for an upbanding is a matter for you and your ethics. Though even if you do, there are no guarantees it will go up.

If a student lives with a non-student, the student is disregarded, so council tax could be reduced as if only a single person lives there. So the non-student may get the 25% single person's discount. But this poses a moral dilemma.

Is it fair for the non-student to pay the entire 75% due, or should the student contribute?

From the student's perspective, they wouldn't pay anything if their housemate was also a student. From the non-student's perspective they'd only pay 50% of the bill if their housemate was also a non-student.

Therefore our suggestion is to split the 25% difference between the two, so the non-student pays 62.5% and the student 12.5%.

You need to apply to your local council for this discount, it isn't deducted automatically. To apply, visit Gov.uk.

Here, while the student again is exempt, because there are two non-students the house has to pay the full 100% charge. So again it gets complex – the student hasn't added to the council tax bill, but nor has their presence resulted in a discount.

You'll need to decide if and how you want to split it, though the legal stance is that full-time students aren't liable for the bill if non-students can't or don't pay.

You need to apply to your local council for this discount, it isn't deducted automatically. To apply, visit Gov.uk.

If you're on a low income (and don't have much in savings) you may be able to receive council tax support to help ease the burden. The 10-Minute Benefit Check-Up will assess your eligibility and suggest if you may be entitled to any other financial support.

If you're in extreme hardship, your council has the power to reduce your council tax bill to zero, but you'll have to prove this beyond reasonable doubt. Each case will be looked at on its merits.

Your bill could also be reduced if you apply for the 'second adult rebate', if you share your home with someone who is aged at least 18 (they can't be your partner), on a low income and not paying rent or council tax themselves.

For unoccupied and unfurnished properties which need or are undergoing major repair work to make them habitable, you may be able to claim a council tax exemption.

The council's likely to send you a completion notice if your home has had major repair works. The notice details the date the council thinks your property was finished. You'll need to pay full council tax from this date.

You'll need to pay council tax if your home's empty, but your council may give you a discount, at its discretion. You won't have to pay council tax if:

• The homeowner is in prison (unless for not paying a fine/council tax).
• The owner is in a care home/hospital.
• The property has been repossessed.
• The owner has died (council tax isn't charged for up to six months after probate is granted).
• The home cannot be lived in by law.

If your home's empty (and unfurnished) for two or more years, your council can charge an extra 50% in council tax if your home's in England or Wales. If it's in Scotland, this premium can be charged after a year, and it can be up to an extra 100% (so effectively your council tax could be doubled!).

If you're in the armed forces and stationed away, this premium doesn't apply.

If your home has a 'granny flat' or similar extension, you're entitled to a discount of 50% on the annexe's council tax bill, provided it's in use as a residence or used by the main homeowner. You'll still pay council tax as normal on the main house. Find out if you're entitled to the discount in our Got an annexe? MSE News story.

You're liable for the full council tax on a second home. However, you could receive a reduction from the appropriate council. Second homes must be furnished to qualify.

Reductions for disability may be available if, for example, you have to live in a large home or you've had to make modifications for accessibility purposes. People with severe mental illnesses are also exempt from council tax. Live-in carers are exempt if they look after someone with a disability who isn't their partner for an average of at least 35 hours a week.

If you're eligible for the guarantee credit part of pension credit, you're also eligible for a full reduction on your council tax. But if you live with any adults who aren't dependent on you then the reduction might be less.

You'll need to let your council know that you should be getting a discount, and you'll have to apply like you would for any other discount.

If you get the savings part of pension credit then you might also be eligible for a discount on your council tax. Discounts can vary depending on where you live – you can apply here to find out how much you can get.