Disregarded person as Council Tax liable person

Magrew

I appreciate the council don't make the rules but I can't understand why they have stated that they ignore the "better off" calculation and have chosen to offer the second adult rebate figure.

That is where I think their error is.

Thanks all for your advice.

elmer

If your relative has applied and disagrees with the decision, your relative can appeal the decision. They will need to put it in writing within a month of the date of the decision.

However in my opinion the decision to award the Second Adult Rebate amount is correct in the circumstances you describe.

elmer

Magrew

This is the advice from Citizen's Advice.

"If you have someone living with you who is not liable to pay the council tax on your property, you may be able to apply for a special type of CTR called a ‘second adult rebate’. You will not be able to claim a second adult rebate as well as a Council Tax Reduction. If you are entitled to both, you will receive whichever is the higher."

Does this mean that the second adult is not entitled to Council Tax Reduction? If that is the case then I think this is a form of indirect disability discrimination. The person is being adversely treated due to the fact that they are living with a disabled person. If they were the liable person and the sole liable occupant of the property then they would be entitled to Council Tax Reduction.

Surely this is an example of the spirit of the law and the letter of the law being in conflict.

CIS

Does this mean that the second adult is not entitled to Council Tax Reduction? If that is the case then I think this is a form of indirect disability discrimination.

A person who is liable for council tax (e.g. the person that receives the demand notice) can also be in receipt of a reduction due to a council tax disregard - i.e they could be tenant who is SMI and live with an adult son. In this cases the person would be eligible to a claim a 25% discount as they are disregarded due to being SMI but they are still the liable person for council tax purposes and could claim CTR on that basis.

The key aspect to remember is that the liability determine which person is named on the demand notice for paying any charge due whereas disregards decide if a person is to be counted when the charge is calculated - they are separate issues (in 99% of cases).

Anyone who is not liable has no claim to the council tax reduction scheme (of which any 2nd adult amount is part of). This is why the extra part of the scheme was put in place to allow the liable person to have any other parties taken in to account where they may fall outside of the main scheme.

elmer

Has a claim for second adult rebate been made? and if so what was the result?

Magrew

The second adult rebate has been claimed and confirmed but no CTR has been offered for the liable person who is SMI and living solely on benefits.

elmer

Thats correct, your relative can't claim a Council Tax reduction for himself as he is not being charged Council Tax as he is disregarded.

elmer

Magrew

Elmer you are saying one thing but CIS seems to be saying something different.

CIS wrote: »

In this cases the person would be eligible to a claim a 25% discount as they are disregarded due to being SMI but they are still the liable person for council tax purposes and could claim CTR on that basis.

If someone could advise me where this is covered in legislation I would be very happy to read it myself to see how I interpret it.

elmer

If your relative claims a CT reduction it would be means tested on their income, would they qualify? If so claim the reduction, if they wouldn't qualify, continue with the second adult rebate claim.

As I don't know all the details, I can only comment on the rules as I understand it given the comments you have made.

Perhaps you would be better discussing this with YOUR local council as Second adult rebate schemes are now locally administered, and I feel I have offered as much assistance as I can on this thread

good luck

elmer

Magrew

An update which I hope may help others.

This has been confirmed through an Independent Review.

In this case where the person liable for the council tax is disregarded and her grown up son who is in the lowest bracket of low earnings and also an unpaid carer there is no Council Tax due however they do have to pay the Water and Sewage charge but with 25% reduction due to consideration of a single adult since the liable person is disregarded for W&S.

Result! Thankfully the regulations do make accommodation for these circumstances, it is just that they are not well understood. The difference in this case was more than £2000. Up until Yesterday the council were insisting it had to be paid having issued final notices with payment required in 14 days.

The stress this put on a disabled individual was unnecessary and had a significant impact on their life over the weeks it took for the correct outcome to be established. Indeed the tone of correspondence from the local authority was frankly quite brutal and unnecessarily high handed. There appears to be a lack of humanity in these organisations. The council did not clearly outline the appeal process to the individual involved and it was simply my research on the internet which made her aware of the appeal options available to her. Vulnerable people should not be treated this way. Thankfully the final letter was apologetic.

I hope this helps others should they find themselves in similar circumstances.