Households across the UK could be entitled to hundreds in council tax refunds. The news follows a Freedom of Information (FOI) request by The Sun, which revealed that over three million households in the UK could collectively be owed £544 million in council tax refunds alone.
Similarly, MoneySavingExpert’s FOI shows that £141 million is owed in council tax refunds through 349 local authorities in England, Scotland, and Wales. Typically, you qualify for a council tax refund if it’s found that you’ve been overpaying for an extended period.
This often happens when your property is placed in the wrong council tax band. You may also be due money from council tax if you forgot to cancel a payment on a property you no longer live in or, if you pay for your council tax in advance, that your account has been closed before the date it was fully paid up to.
It’s important to note that these bands are based on the property’s value as of April 1, 1991, not its current value. Therefore, if you want to check if your property is in the correct band, you’ll need to find out what it was worth in 1991.
Council tax bands
You can do this by looking up the property on websites like Rightmove and Zoopla, or by comparing your tax band with a neighbour’s similar property. If you believe your home is in the incorrect tax band, you can contact the Valuation Office Agency (VAO) and explain your reasoning.
Should you discover that you’ve been overpaying your council tax due to this issue, you could be eligible for a significant refund. The following council tax bands are applicable based on a property’s value:
- Band A – Up to £40,000
- Band B – Between £40,001 and £52,000
- Band C – Between £52,001 and £68,000
- Band D – Between £68,001 and £88,000
- Band E – Between £88,001 and £120,000
- Band F – Between £120,001 and £160,000
- Band G – Between £160,001 and £320,000
- Band H – Over £320,000
How to make a claim for a council tax repayment
There are a couple of ways available to claim a refund on your tax – however, some options may not be available for all councils. Firstly, you can check to see if your council already has a form available on its respective website.
In order to see if this form is available, head to the government’s local authority search tool and enter the relevant postcode. You will then be provided information on the council in charge of that postcode as well as a link to the relevant council’s website.
However, if you are unable to find a form specifically for reclaiming council tax, you will have to reach out to the relevant council directly. You can use the above government checker to find the council’s contact details including email and phone number.
