Council Tax Rebanding SUCCESS stories

lucygotit

I hadn't heard anything from the VOA since I wrote to them informing them of my finding that our house is in the wrong banding.
I rung them today and they informed me that we are in the wrong band and that we will be hearing from the council in due course and everything will be back dated to 1st April 1993.

Yippee:j

However, does anyone know how long it takes to get refunded from the council?

This is all thanks to MSE :beer:

lucygotit

I hadn't heard anything from the VOA since I wrote to them informing them of my finding that our house is in the wrong banding.
I rung them today and they informed me that we are in the wrong band and that we will be hearing from the council in due course and everything will be back dated to 1st April 1993.

Yippee:j

However, does anyone know how long it takes to get refunded from the council?

This is all thanks to MSE :beer:

steve16

.....Took all the tips/advice and now £2850 better off.
Many Thanks :beer: :j :T

Maisie

mariecc wrote: »

as I say well done all you have succeded. Today I have recieved a letter from the voa rejecting my application, I was told the valuation was done by square footage, I don't know where to turn, I'm trying to see if can paste my letter on here as the VOA have said I cannot appeal.

After listening to some of you who didn't give up, please help me, ideas on the letters or direction I should take would be fantasic, I am now so depressed and miserable.

Please help...

mariecc. Post on the 'council tax discussion' thread and someone will help you.

pootlespets

:rotfl: AFTER READING THE ARTICLE I DECIDED TO APPLY FOR A COUNCIL BAND REASSESMENT AS MY PROPERTY WAS THE ONLY ONE ON THE STREET AS A BAND B, EVEN THOUGH I HAD LIVED IN THE HOUSE FOR MORE THAN SIX MONTHS. AT FIRST I RECIEVED A NO OFF THE VALUATION DEPT AND A FORM I HAD TO FILL IN TO APPEAL WHICH I DID, THEN IN DUE COURSE I R4ECIEVED A LETTER SAYING MY APPEAL HAD FAILED AND THE CASE WAS BEING REVIEWED TO GO TO COURT AND APPEAL THERE IF I WANTED IT TO, WHICH I DID, THEN TWO MONTHE LATER I RECIEVED A LETTER SAYING THEY HAD REVIEWED MY APPEAL AND NOW THE HOUSE WAS BEING REBANDED TO AN A. RESULT, DON'T LET THEM INTIMIDATE YOU INTO NOT PERSUING THE CASE JUST MAKE SURE YOU HAVE SOLID EVIDENCE TO BACK UP YOUR CLAIM AND APPEAL APPEAL APPEAL!!!

pootlespets

It Took Two Weeks From The Letter Saying We Had Been Mis-banded To Recieve New Council Tax Form, As Our Refund Was Not Massive It Was Taken Off This Years Bill

sheilac_3

Thanks very much Martin

Following your article on re-banding I followed your instructions and have just received a refund of £1450 from Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council changing from a Band D to a Band C with an annual saving of £300.

It was straight forward and took 7 weeks. The council were quite clever though and tried to take my refund to pay for this years council tax, but I insisted that as my D.D was set up and had been activated I wanted the refund.
Thanks once again, i'm spreading the word about your fantastic website.

andyhlee

Local Borough Council: East Staffordshire Borough Council
Council Tax Band Before: F
Council Tax Band After: E
Amount refunded: £2,700
Annual saving going forward: £300

I suspected for a long time that my Council Tax Banding was too high.

Following the advice on moneysavingexpert.com I discovered that my neighbours in similar houses were in Band 'E', and that the estimated value of my house at valuation time was well within the lower Band. So I appealed to the Valuation Officer for re-banding from 'F' to 'E'.

Within four weeks (without any inspection) the Valuation Officer confirmed that there had been an error and that my house should be in Band 'E'.

Within another four weeks (without any hassling on my part) I received a refund of over £2,700!

Going forward I'll save at least £300 a year.

All for the price of a stamp. No arguments, no hassle, no inspection, just a thumping great cheque.

Thank you moneysavingexpert.com You guys know your stuff.

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Andy Lee, Tutbury, Staffordshire, England

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j-lo40

LBC: Blackburn with Darwin
Banding Before: D
Banding After : C
Refund:£1000
Annual Saving: £150

Thank you Martin. I followed all your advice and without too much hastle the local VOA agreed that I was in the wrong tax banding. I was going to appeal on the basis that a motorway has opened at the end of the A675 and the traffic through my village has more than trebled since I moved in back in 1996However, they agreed to do it on the basis that it was valued wrong in 1991 because I told them that we had paid less than the banding for a D when we purchased the property in 1996 (and still had copies of all the documentation if they required proof). They guy at Preston VOA was extremely helpful and they also agreed to backdate it to 1993. Fantastic. They lady I dealt with at Blackburn with Darwen BC was also a great help and it was all done and dusted within 6-8 weeks. We are also following your advice on reclaiming bank charges and are hoping for some luck on that too. Once again Martin, thanks. :j
Jane

AloeVeraGirl

Local Borough Council: Milton Keynes, Bucks.
Council Tax Band Before: F
Council Tax Band After: E
Amount refunded: £2,017
Annual Saving: £300

It was a simple task to find out if we were in the wrong band, by following the 5 minute step-by-step guide on this website.
We discovered that the house next door, which was identical to ours, was in the lower band.
All it took was a letter to the VOA and a wait of a couple of months before we received our rebate. We had been overpaying for 10 years.

Thank you Martin for the information and the impetus to give it a try !