Council Tax Rebanding SUCCESS stories

epx

Local Borough Council: Haringey
Council Tax Band Before: E
Council Tax Band After: D
Amount refunded: £798
Annual saving going forward: £332

This was so easy. One carefully worded letter sent, a few weeks wait: band lowered.

One call to the council, a few weeks wait: cheque for £798

Use the VOA website to check your band, it was so worth my while doing it, thanks MSE! K-ching!

theloft

lincroft1710 wrote: »

I think there is something wrong with your ability to read figures I said 1993, repeat 1993, recheck my posts!!!

You are absoltely correct, I will have to go and see a consultant about dyslexia or whatever you call it for numbers. I did mean 1993 but it didn't come out that way !! Senior moment or the new pills I am on !!

cheeky

lincroft1710 wrote: »

cheeky - CT is based on 1991 values not 1993 and house price indices are inaccurate. The extensions may not be reflected in the bands of the other houses and the "z" houses may be smaller than yours.

It may be worth asking for a review of your band but this may highlight that the "z" bands are too low and they could be increased.

thanks - nothing ventured etc. Would be worth about a grand over the last 3 1/2 years

lincroft1710

theloft wrote: »

You are absoltely correct, I will have to go and see a consultant about dyslexia or whatever you call it for numbers. I did mean 1993 but it didn't come out that way !! Senior moment or the new pills I am on !!

Definitely the pills, you can never trust them!

Em_ster

Local Borough Council: Leeds City Council
Council Tax Band Before: D
Council Tax Band After: C
Amount refunded: £ 1200
Annual saving going forward: £145 as charge was £ 1306 down to £1161

Thanks MSE!!!!!!!! :beer:

ANGEL_EYES_2

LONDON BOROUGH COUNCIL:LAMBETH
COUNCIL TAX BAND BEFORE: D
COUNCIL TAX BAND AFTER: B
AMOUNT REFUNDED:£2500 (backdated to 1993)
ANNUAL SAVING GOING FORWARD:£274

One email and six weeks later I have been successfully rebanded from D to B,using all the info on this site.

The council did try to take my council tax for the year from the total amount they owed me but I was having none of it!!!!!!! :mad:
I called them to say that I wanted my full refund and to pay my bills monthly as normal.

Thanks Martin and other MSEs for all the advice and info.This is a great site!!!!!!!!:j
p.s.This is my first post.

sbr_2

Local Borough Council: Bracknell Forest
Council Tax Band Before: C
Council Tax Band After: B
Amount refunded: just over £350 (for 3 years)
Annual saving going forward: £115+ per year

I was alerted to this whole issue by some junk mail offering to investigate my council tax band. One google search later and, thanks to Martin's article, I realised I didn't need to pay somebody else to sort it out but could do it myself.

I live in a bridge flat/maisonette in Bracknell surrounded mostly by houses. Investigation showed that most of the houses are band C but the bridge flat next door and two more across the road are band B, whereas my identical-looking flat was band C. I did worry slightly that asking for a reassessment would cause the other bridge flats to be re-categorised as band C, but the valuation check advised by the article suggested that was unlikely.

I phoned the Reading VOA office, gave my address and the addresses of the three identical-seeming flats that were in a lower band than mine, and the officer said he would request an assessment. That was some time ago; I kept forgetting to call back to check on progress. Today, out of the blue, I received a set of statements from the council for the three years I've been in the property, indicating that I'm now in band B and am due a credit on each year.

Thanks, moneysavingexpert.com!

chewmylegoff

Local Borough Council: Richmond upon Thames
Council Tax Band Before: F
Council Tax Band After: E
Amount refunded: nil (just moved in)
Annual saving going forward: £400 per annum

One email sent, was rebanded within a month.

All I did was list six nearby properties recently sold for more than the value of my flat, but which were in bands D/E, and then backed this up with the HPI calculator which predicted my flat was right at the bottom of band E.

TJolly

We failed.

Local Borough Council: Cheshire & Cheshire West
Council Tax Band Before: F
Council Tax Band After: F
Amount refunded: 0
Annual saving going forward: 0

House was purchased in 1993 at £110.000. The Nationwide price checker valued the house at approximately £117.000 in 1991.

Listing Officer states that in his opinion the house was worth more than £120.000 in 1991.

dandylion4

Hi, I have never posted on a forum in my life so hopefully this will be in the right place.

There are 8 house in my street 7 are in band E and we are in band F. I have checked the valuation of my house as it would have been in 1991 and it would have been valued at £93757 which leads me to believe that I have been wrongly banded. I called the VO and was advised to complete the paperwork they were going to send me. This has arrived this morning and it is a VO7497 document which asks me to complete my property details. Is this necessary, surely by looking at the banding of the other propertys they should be able to tell that we are in the wrong band. I see that some posters have just had letters sent to them after they have made a phone call. I'm just a little wary of completing the form and looking for advice. Many Thanks and apologies if I have posted in the wrong place.