council tax

janey70

hi im a single mum who works 16 hrs a week just recieved my council tax bill through and im a bit confused i dont have to pay anything ! im not moaning but usually i have to pay something ive looked how they have worked it out but dont understand it really anyone else had this happen ? just dont want them coming to me in few months saying been a mistake

flossy190

there is some mistake even if it is just £5 you will have to contribute something imo anyways lol i would give them a ring and ask them my council tax is all over the place iv had three letters with three different amounts on them! usless

karenx

Same with me 1 letter says 1 thing and another letter says different. I would make an appointment to go in and take wage slips, tax credits award etc with you and make sure its all correct.

janey70

ive just rang them told them wot i earn and how much wtc i get and there figures are diffrent but not by much she said but to take 2 wage slips in to get it reassesed . better to be honest i suppose than be dumped with a big bill in few months

fluffymovie

Just to try and improve the rep that we sometimes get working in benefits "useless"! there are a number of reasons why you may get more than 1 letter.

For those of you who receive Tax Credits, the awards usually change quite a bit in April and we have to use the payments that are shown. We can't average over the year or whatever! This can mean that benefit changes quite a few times in a small space of time.

If for any reason, we change your award, we are legally required to send you notice of this detailing the decision and giving you your appeal rights.

If you had no changes, the only letters you would receive would be your annual council tax bill when the benefit was increased following the Ctax rises but that doesn't happen in practice and so a lot of letters can be generated as a result.

If you don't keep the council updated when things change, it can cause issues. If your Working Tax Credit has changed, let the council know and they can ensure that you receive all the help they can give you.

daimonde

to echo what fluffy has said, i also work in the 'useless' benefits and the biggest cause of calls in my LA is the letters sent out, which we would love to have more control over than we do.....just having ours sent out in plain english would be nice ....oh and tax credit changes ....*shudders*


back to the OP, id suggest ringing & checking they have your correct current income on record. theres an awful lot of calls at the moment with the end of the financial year - changes to benefits, rents, wages etc, so try to call outside 'peak' times if you can, id suggest first thing or after 3pm to avoid waiting too long. avoid 12-2, cos even we have to eat

its always best to give them too much info rather than not enough. if your wages, or tax credits change, up or down, let them know.

if you can drop info off in an office & get some kinda receipt thats better than posting too.



Dave.

CIS

to echo what fluffy has said, i also work in the 'useless' benefits and the biggest cause of calls in my LA is the letters sent out, which we would love to have more control over than we do.....just having ours sent out in plain english would be nice ....oh and tax credit changes ....*shudders*

I agree from the council tax side - plain, straight forward letters would be nice but for some reason the people who devise them dont seem to have any idea what they are doing most of the time.