Should I be paying Council Tax?

AliceP70 · 20 March 2018 at 12:40AM

Hello. I wonder if one of you can help me. First off I am sorry if I have posted this in the incorrect section. This problem is rather complicated so I will try and keep it as quick as possible.

I recently received a council tax bill for 2018/19 for £1200+.
The problem is i have been told that I am not required to pay council tax as I am currently living with my parents and my best friend and her family. (The reason for this will be explained in second two incase it's needed).Both houses pay full council tax (no discounts) and both own their own houses. I am currently on ESA as well but hopefully not for too much longer now. With the above information could I be expected to pay council Tax?

I have put in an appeal with the council but sadly I have not heard anything and i am starting to spend sleepless nights worrying that I am going to be hit with a 1.2k bill that I will no way be able to afford and will be back at square one with my debt (see section two) and that makes me panic more which ends in a very vicious circle.

Thank you for any help you can give me - Alice.

Second two: This is just for a bit more info incase it's needed.
The reason I am living between two houses is because a few years ago I became expectedly ill and it was felt by myself and my family it wasn't safe for me to live on my own. I was also in £6,000 worth of debt due to being unexpectedly out of work so saving money on my rent was also a factor in moving in with my parents and working on paying it off faster as this was making my illness worse. The reason I move between houses is also due to my illness. When I have a bad episode i don't like letting my parents seeing how bad I get as it worrys them so I stay with my friend and her husband.

elsien · 20 March 2018 at 12:45AM

Council tax is on the property, not the person.
So which address does the council tax bill you have received relate to, and can you demonstrate that the bill for that property is already being paid by someone else?

From what you've said, it sounds like the council have got crossed wires somewhere. Is the bill for a previous address and they aren't aware you no longer live there?

AliceP70 · 20 March 2018 at 12:50AM

Thank you for your reply.
The letter was sent to my parents address but the letter does not state which property the council tax is for which i'm sure it normally should?

I'm sure I can ask my parents if they have a council tax bill or my friends. Will that be enough?

I am also struggling to find a way to prove I live with either of them if that is required as I don't have utility bills, phone contracts etc

elsien · 20 March 2018 at 1:03AM

The council tax bill should state the address of the property giving rise to the charge. That's your starting point then, to find out what address the bill is supposedly for. If it's for your parents or your friends house, and already being paid in full by the homeowners/tenants then you don't owe anything. If you're not having any joy, maybe contact your local councillor to look into it for you.

Edited to add: my bill has the postal address for the bill holder and the address the bill relates to side by side at the top of page 1.

AliceP70 · 20 March 2018 at 2:48AM

Thank you.

Just looked again and the box that says Property Address (next to the address the letter was sent to) is empty.
This may be an error on my part.
Well, i would assume it's not for my old property as it was a council flat and I gave them back the keys.
When I gave up my house I contacted the council to tell them where I was moving to but I wasn't sure where at that point but said it would most likely be my parents house. I did so a week or two later, via letter, to confirm that it was now my new address but thinking back I never heard anything from them to confirm they got the letter.

Would this be the error? If this is where the problem lies would this mean i'd have to pay the council tax? I know you may not be able to give me a definitive answer and I guess i'm just hoping to be told "It will all be okay in the end and it will get sorted out" just so I can somewhat relax and get a proper nights sleep and not panicking I'll be hit with a huge bill.

elsien · 20 March 2018 at 8:31AM

If there's no address saying where the bill relates to, could well be an error on the council's part. And they must have had the letter saying you're at your parents house to have sent the letter there. Phone them to ask where they think the bill is for. It will be sorted, don't panic.

comeandgo · 20 March 2018 at 8:36AM

Are you the first name on the alphabet at the house the bill was addressed to? I am the one the council tax bill is addressed to as my name comes before my husbands in the alphabet. This is how our council addresses the council tax bills.

CIS · 20 March 2018 at 8:39AM

AliceP70 wrote: »

Thank you.

Just looked again and the box that says Property Address (next to the address the letter was sent to) is empty.
This may be an error on my part.
Well, i would assume it's not for my old property as it was a council flat and I gave them back the keys.
When I gave up my house I contacted the council to tell them where I was moving to but I wasn't sure where at that point but said it would most likely be my parents house. I did so a week or two later, via letter, to confirm that it was now my new address but thinking back I never heard anything from them to confirm they got the letter.

Would this be the error? If this is where the problem lies would this mean i'd have to pay the council tax? I know you may not be able to give me a definitive answer and I guess i'm just hoping to be told "It will all be okay in the end and it will get sorted out" just so I can somewhat relax and get a proper nights sleep and not panicking I'll be hit with a huge bill.

Check which property it is for (The council demand will show which property the charge is for, that is a legal requirement) - unless there's an error it shouldn't be for your parents or your friends property although it could be for an old property (but again the address should be shown).

Depending on how they print the bill the 'property address' will often just be used if the actual charge relates to another property than the one to which it has been posted. Some authorities will print the 'property address' and the 'postal address', which may or may not be the same, and others will only print the one address if they property and postal address are the same.

What I'd suspect has most likely happened is that for some reason they have the information to indicate you've moved in and then for some reason they believe you have become the liable party at the new address - it's far from an uncommon error to occur but the only way to deal with it is to speak with the council.

All in all it's an easy issue to sort - usually it can be sorted over the phone. With the number of new year Council Tax demand notices going out this time of year (tens of thousands for each council) then it's very common for errors to be spotted and council's are quite used to getting phone-calls (I hated the start of the year work simply because of the number of queries that came through)

warby68 · 20 March 2018 at 8:42AM

Do the Council Tax people know you have given up the council property as well as the Housing people? The systems don't often speak to each other as such. Is it possible they think you still have that property even though you aren't currently living there? As long as you were up to date with the bills when you moved out, it should sort itself out.

The alternative is their system possibly thinks you are the 'new' occupier of your parents' home rather than just living with them. That should be sortable too.

There is no additional council tax due if the bill for the two properties you live between is already being paid in full and there should be nothing more due for the property you left as long as you were up to date at the end of the tenancy.

MoneyGeoff · 20 March 2018 at 12:59PM

A council tax bill with a blank property box probably isn't enforceable. It sounds like a mistake.

If they have not responded to your complaint you could try raising it via Resolver: https://www.resolver.co.uk/

Most councils are on there and it helps keep an audit trail and evidence that you are trying to solve the matter and they aren't responding. It also escalates the case after a period of time.

CIS · 20 March 2018 at 1:23PM

Until the OP has clarified some more information there's not any real purpose in trying to raise it as a complaint. The letter has been sent at the busiest time of year for a local authority so it's no surprise there may be a delay in replying, the issue is very likely one which can be resolved via a simple telephone call.

As I mentioned in an earlier post the 'property box' on the demand notice may well be empty, it is often only used where the property the demand notice refers to is for another address other then the one posted to. In that case it wouldn't invalidate the demand notice - the phone call to the local authority will answer the question quite easily.

Should I be paying Council Tax?

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