council tax for renting room

spezial

My landlord supposedly owns the house I am renting a room at, but he is on benefits or something like that, so he doesn't want others to know that I am renting his room. I wonder if this can work some way. For example can we declare that we are friends and he just lets me live there? Will I still have to pay council tax and will he lose his benefits? The situation is difficult, but I am quite well in that place and don't want to leave. Any idea?

Pete9501

So your LL is probably committing fraud by not declaring the rental income and possibly claim single occupancy allowance for the CT. You should dob him in immediately.

CIS

You won't have any council tax charge to pay - any charge would be the landlords. It does sound like he is potentially committing benefit fraud.

pmlindyloo

Does your landlord live there?

G_M

Council tax fraud (if he is also claiming a discount for single occupancy).

Benefit fraud if he is not declaring the income.

You could start sleeping with him and claim no money changes hands as you are partners, but I suspect even that would have an impact on benefit entitlement (and single occupancy discount).

Pun

You're a party to fraud and you know it. Try behaving honestly.

booksurr

spezial wrote: »

The situation is difficult, but I am quite well in that place and don't want to leave. Any idea?

idea of what

you want us to congratulate you on your moral stance of supporting fraud?

or you want us to sympathise with you for being uncomfortable about your situation but unwilling to do the only thing you can - report him for fraud ?

jjlandlord

spezial wrote: »

The situation is difficult, but I am quite well in that place and don't want to leave. Any idea?

Either move, or keep quiet and don't ask questions. What else?

If you do not accept what he is doing, and/or you want to report him, clearly you ought to move.

If you want to stay then clearly you shouldn't make waves...

BitterAndTwisted

spezial wrote: »

My landlord supposedly owns the house I am renting a room at, but he is on benefits or something like that, so he doesn't want others to know that I am renting his room. I wonder if this can work some way. For example can we declare that we are friends and he just lets me live there? Will I still have to pay council tax and will he lose his benefits? The situation is difficult, but I am quite well in that place and don't want to leave. Any idea?

For example can we declare that we are friends and he just lets me live there?

This won't make any difference to their responsibility to pay the full Council Tax. Even if you were their romantic partner or spouse.


Will I still have to pay council tax and will he lose his benefits?

As the landlord's lodger it is their responsibility to declare they are not living in the property alone, not yours. If he declared that you are living there he will be liable for 100% of the Council Tax rather than 75% and will consequently also lose some of his benefits. He might get to keep about a fiver a week of the rent you pay him.

It's for him to decide whether the risk of non-disclosure is worth it or not.

silverwhistle

Make sure that you're on the electoral register; then at least you can say you've been open about where you live. You're not party to what your landlord does with your rent or their other personal circumstances...

BitterAndTwisted

The electoral register is likely the first thing anyone interested in checking up on the landlord will look. It only takes one phone call from a busybody neighbour to pique their interest.

You could be a family-member visiting for a short time, not paying any rent, if anyone wants to know