Single Occupancy Discount - not occupied!

taffjones99

Hi,

I just bought a new property, but due to quality of build I was not able to move into it. Of course I requested an unoccupied rate, which is limited to 2 months by my council. It was unoccupied for a further 3 months and then I moved in as a single occupant.

When I requested the single occupancy rate, I was told this would only apply from the time I moved in - so for 3 months I have to pay full rate. Even worse, I had to pay for my other property (which I've now finally sold).

Is there some way I can reclaim this discount? I don't see anything on the council's website stating these rules.

Thanks,

Simon

Nearlyold

Without knowing which council its difficult to comment as they don't all have the same rules. To get a single occupancy discount on an unoccupied property would seem illogical though - how would you evidence how many residents weren't living there? Was it habitable during the unoccupancy period?

taffjones99

It's High Wycombe council.

When I bought it, I intended to move in right away but it's a new build and there were so many issues with it - balcony door not closing, leaking shower, badly matching flooring, etc. - that I was forced to postpone moving in by several months. Not sure any of those things constitute calling it inhabitable though.

If I'd given a different date for moving in - April instead of June, I'd have gone straight from unoccupied rate to single occupancy rate, so it seems pretty arbitrary that zero occupiers cost more than a single occupier!

lincroft1710

The theory is to make it uneconomical to leave properties empty. Councils now set their own period for empty property relief, some choose not to grant relief. Single person discount can only be claimed when a sole or main residence is occupied, so in your case it was doubly inapplicable.

You have no claim for any discount