Council Tax reduction

northwest1965

I completed the form for my Mum who has Alzheimers and the doctor signed it on October 2nd.

Should it be backdated to the diagnosis date?

converted

yes it can be back dated

CIS

It can be backdated to the earliest date that both a qualifying benefit was in payment and the medical professional certifies that a person qualified as SMI for that period.

Depending on how far back it is though the local authority can limit the backdating to 6 years - http://wp.me/p6WMjS-so

northwest1965

Thank you. The bill came yesterday and the reduction starts on Oct 2nd.

I will ring the council tomorrow

CIS

northwest1965 wrote: »

Thank you. The bill came yesterday and the reduction starts on Oct 2nd.

I will ring the council tomorrow

As long as the requirements are met then the local authority have to backdate the request for you.

Craig

converted

So therefore it can be backdated to when she was diagnosed and she had the relevant benefit i.e AA or DLA. Although the doctor should have put on the form the date she was diagnosed if that was not the same as the date he signed the form.

CIS

converted wrote: »

So therefore it can be backdated to when she was diagnosed and she had the relevant benefit i.e AA or DLA. Although the doctor should have put on the form the date she was diagnosed if that was not the same as the date he signed the form.

That was a common issue I used to see - the date the Drs put on the form & what was actually correct.

It could cause problems in some cases but to be fair my authority would tend to use some discretion and award a short period if there was an issue with the dates but it looked like they should have been entitled.

I was half expecting the OP to say it was to go back years (which can cause problems) but Oct this year should be simple to deal with.

Craig

Michtaylor09

When we put a claim in for my MIL earlier this year, they back dated it 10 years which is when she was diagnosed. Because she lived with us and we provided her with 24hr care, we only had to pay 50% council tax.

CIS

Michtaylor09 wrote: »

When we put a claim in for my MIL earlier this year, they back dated it 10 years which is when she was diagnosed. Because she lived with us and we provided her with 24hr care, we only had to pay 50% council tax.

If it's been within the last few years when it was done then technically speaking the council shouldn't have done it (as it's contrary to the decisions of the valuation office regarding the backdating period). If the local authority want to foot the extra cost then they can make that judgement call but they could in principal leave themselves open to arguments of malpractice on how it was done.

That being said - if you can claim and the local authority will award it then you're not going to argue, are you ?

Craig

Consumer_1

Hello,
I don't know whether you can help me please.
My dad was diagnosed with Alzhiemers dementia in June 2014. He receives attendance allowance and lives in sheltered accommodation. Would he be able to claim for a 100% reduction on his council tax? He currently receives 25% reduction for living alone. We hold LPA for medical and finance as he cannot cope with doing any of the paperwork or phone calls associated with any bills etc... Many thanks all

CIS

Consumer_1 wrote: »

Hello,
I don't know whether you can help me please.
My dad was diagnosed with Alzhiemers dementia in June 2014. He receives attendance allowance and lives in sheltered accommodation. Would he be able to claim for a 100% reduction on his council tax? He currently receives 25% reduction for living alone. We hold LPA for medical and finance as he cannot cope with doing any of the paperwork or phone calls associated with any bills etc... Many thanks all

Providing he holds entitlement to a qualifying benefit and meets the definition of 'severely mentally impaired' (for which a Dr is willing to certify the same) then yes.

Craig