Council Tax Bands

Alfie_E

On Martin’s Council Tax Cashback page, it says:

Individual councils annually decide the amounts that should be payable for Band B and D, with all the other bands then calculated proportionally.

This suggests that councils choose two figures, and so determine the spacing between the bands. This doesn’t seem to be the case. Table 12 on page 22 of the IFS’s Briefing Note 9: A Survey of UK Tax System indicates that only Band D is chosen and all the others are in direct fixed proportion.

This agrees with the figures I get from looking at various locations using the UpMyStreet website referred to in Martin’s article.

Maybe I’m being sad to correct it, but I was surprised when the Briefing Note didn’t agree with what I thought I knew. (I was looking for a comprehensive The UK Tax System for Dummmies, at the time. )

CIS

All of the figures are set based on the value of Band D with Band D being 9/9 and the other bands being set either side of this.

sandreamer

Hi

Not sure I understand last thread - I am currently band E in comparison with the rest of the road who are tax band D or less.

I phoned up the local office to find out why and they stated that my home was larger than the rest - and I 'had' to agree this would alter the price of the property. I dont actually agree to that and asked to challenge the banding that was put in place in 1991. I was asked if I had had a review and stated no - not in the 25 years i have been here. So, back in 1991 this office had quoted that they had detailed plans of the property - yet yesterday wanted number of rooms and details of the garage at the property from me!!

I have written in to challenge the banding - to confirm it is not a 'review' just in case this is not going to be done.

I live in a road where the properties differ somewhat - with bungalows, detached homes, chalet properties and then some terraced properties. The only one to be almost similar is the next door neighbour - who is on the band lower - and the other side of me is a bungalow - 2 bed on tax band D as well (mine is E).

I am miffed because it is ludicrous that the one next door to me is in a tax band priced at £1 less than mine on the market!! Bungalows of substantial size over the road - the same band D - when most people know bungalows actually fetch a lot higher on the market due to the popularity and not so of the size.

It is not a fair system at all obviously. My circumstances have changed in the 25 years and have brought up three children and paid tax band E all along. I have had 25% in the last ten years because my three at in full time education - but we do not get any better service for our money - though that is another issue of course. We have bags delivered for refuse - the same number as those in tax band A - D - and yet the payment between D and E is £400 more per year. Our local police authority is part time and that adds to the issues. It isnt just the banding - if we all felt we had a better service then - we might be happy paying for it!

About time the country got up in arms about the whole system - someone mentioned Scotlands banding was different - Northern Ireland are not on council tax are they? What happened to the UK?