Money Moral Dilemma: Should I tell the previous owner of my home he's due a council tax refund?

barryboldsmith

If it were me, as tempting as it is to act out of spite, I'd try and push myself to be the kind of person I'd be proud of and do the right thing, regardless of any good or bad will. You never know, he may reciprocate, though he may not. Treat others how you'd like to be treated and what not

JainEm

eao said:

Yes, tell him and remind him of his obligation to you.  It is the right thing,.

Yes you should tell him, but remind him he owes you the £2k, then forget about it. It's the right thing to do and you've nothing to gain by NOT telling him. You may even get your £2k back and, if you don't, you still know you're the better person.

louloubarneymcgrew

The council will update all previous homeowners once a band has been amended, so it doesn't matter whether you tell him or not.

mebu60

Swan6 said:

I would say take the 2k from the 8k and give him the rest, tell him your not like him.

OP does not get the £8k.

mebu60

mimgable said:

You have to tell him as otherwise you are committing theft. You could be in court if he or anyone else found out you’d stolen money he is due.

the loss of money from broken promises is a separate issue and needs addressing separately. Which probably is more than it’s worth for the hassle. Both house moves I’ve done I’ve been out of pocket due to things like solicitors not paying stamp duty. Last min price hikes by sellers (having already paid money for solicitors work).

best to swallow hard tell him+move on in life. You could ask when you tell him if he’d help out with the out of pocket expenses but don’t expect a positive response! Not everyone is able to see things from other’s perspective 

There is no theft or stealing involved in this scenario. Just the potential withholding of information that could benefit the other party financially who the OP believes cost him money through failing to honour promises.

subjecttocontract

It depends on whether you want to go to  Heaven later on. There's enough nastiness in the World already without you adding more. Tell him, it'll make you feel good !

Marvel1

No, he shouldn't have challenged himself.

pickledtink

Nope. Not your problem or responsibility to assist your seller in his financial affairs. Especially if he has been dishonest and cost you £2000.However I doubt you'll get anywhere trying to recover or hold him to his empty promises. Let that go and get on with your life in the knowledge that if this person had treated decently and honestly with you he would have benefited greatly and much more from your good natured information than cheating you out of £2000. Hope you'll be very happy in your new home. 

Chris_Jay

Why not find out why the promises weren't kept? There may be a very good reason.
As for telling him about the rebanding, put yourself in his shoes - how would you feel if the situation were reversed?
Be the good guy.

lean&mean

Congratulations on getting your house re-rated. 

I chase the seller for the broken promises. If he doesn’t cough up, don’t tell him about the back payments.  There’s no obligation on you to do so and you’ll just be denying your local council that much needed money to provide services to you and your neighbourhood.