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Households are being hit with a new range of sneaky charges by councils looking to raise extra cash. A social media post by The Inbetweeners actor James Buckley went viral last week when he shared his outrage about a new trick of charging £60 for garden waste bin removals – a service previously included as part of his Chelmsford council tax bill.
‘Taking more money off me and doing less,’ was the verdict of James, 37, who played Jay Cartwright in the Channel 4 comedy – a view shared by millions nationwide.
Other ruses we have uncovered include describing sheds and spare rooms as annexes that attract separate council tax and putting homes into more expensive tax bands.
This cash grab comes as councils struggle to stay in budget, with rising social care costs, increased staff wages – and often large debts.
Lawyers say this has led to a 20 per cent jump in complaints about local authorities adopting new techniques to increase their revenue.
An overhaul of the council tax system by Deputy Premier Angela Rayner could see wealthier areas, including London and the Home Counties, pay more, adds the Institute of Fiscal Studies think-tank.
HOW SNOOPERS POUNCE
Tax bands are decided by the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) and based on property values in 1991.
But councils can move homes up a band if major structural property changes have been made since 1991.
The Inbetweeners actor James Buckley shared his outrage about a new trick of charging £60 for garden waste bin removals – a service previously included in his Chelmsford council tax bill
Council snoopers can pore over planning applications and drive round streets in search of potential candidates. They can also re-evaluate houses when they are sold – though they must still use the 1991 valuation as a blueprint.
Homeowners are also targeted by over-zealous council staff when planning permission for improvements has been applied for.
Lawyer Zain Ghulam, of Zain Legal and Company in Birmingham, who specialises in council tax disputes, says: ‘There has been a huge jump in people contacting us in the past couple of months fuelled by councils desperately looking for new ways to earn money.
‘Clients have even seen council officials peering over their hedge or slowly driving past the home to see if they can charge more for an annexe or put the property in a higher tax band because of improvements.’
HOW TO FIGHT RISES
If your council tax band is changed by the VOA, it is up to you to prove it has got it wrong.
Zain says: ‘The council may tell you to go to the VOA while the agency might send you back to the council. This game is designed to grind you down.
‘And wheels of bureaucracy move painfully slowly. It can take months – even years – to get a wrong decision put right.’
This is why people often turn to lawyers. Zain charges £594 a day to help clients get their money back and sometimes this requires a separate £500 independent survey of the property. He says clients usually recoup more than they paid.
Other ruses we have uncovered include describing sheds and spare rooms as annexes that attract separate council tax
You save money if you take on the council without legal help. Last year the VOA received 43,000 challenges to council tax band re-evaluations. Of these, some 10,500 were successful and the bands decreased.
There are independent sources that provide free support when making a challenge, such as consumer advice body HomeOwners Alliance. Go to hoa.org.uk.
Its chief executive Paula Higgins says: ‘You cannot ignore new council tax demands – they can come back and bite you with an extra charge.
‘But you can challenge council tax and if successful you get tax reduced and are refunded for years you overpaid – so potentially thousands of pounds.’
You can go to the council if you have a specific problem, such as an old shed being classified as a taxable annex.
It could be taxable if it is deemed ‘self-contained’ with not just a bedroom, but kitchen and bathroom. Taking out a kitchen should sort out the problem but you will need this to be verified by the VOA.
To contact the VOA in England, call 03000 501 501, in Wales 03000 505 505. In Scotland contact the Scottish Assessors’ Association on 01786 892 237, in Northern Ireland contact Land and Property Services on 0300 200 7801.
You can also click on ‘challenge this council tax band’ on the Government’s gov.uk website. If not happy with the outcome you can appeal within three months of the decision by taking your case to the Valuation Tribunal.
An overhaul of the council tax system by Deputy Premier Angela Rayner could see wealthier areas pay more
SHOCK AT DEMANDS
SIMON Dyer received a £3,676 council tax bill for his Band G farmhouse in Somerset. If that wasn’t bad enough, North Somerset Council also demanded £2,941 for a flat inside the property that he once rented out but a couple of years ago turned back to be part of his farmhouse.
Simon, 62, says: ‘We rented out a room in the pandemic to bring in extra money but now it is only used by the family.
‘My 21-year-old son is at Bristol University and uses this room for studying. I told the council but they simply tell me the Valuation Office Agency is responsible for deciding the bill – and they, in turn, said someone would come round to check.
‘But that was a year ago and I have not seen sight nor sound of anyone since. In the meantime, I must pay the bill.’
Another complainant, 59-year-old Alan Alexander, who owns a five-bedroom house in Kent, says he received a final demand – including a threat of bailiffs unless he paid £1,400 for what was purported to be a converted annex at the property but was in fact a dilapidated shed. This demand was initially made a couple of years ago on top of his £4,000 a year council tax paid to Maidstone Council.
Alan says: ‘It took six months to get the problem sorted out – with me spending hours on the phone with the council and the Valuation Office Agency trying to get them to see common sense.
‘The previous owners had put in a planning application for the shed to be converted but nothing was ever done.
‘The council was clearly on a fishing expedition looking for new ways to make more money.
‘The problem was eventually resolved last year when, after numerous phone calls to the valuation office, I sent photos showing we only had a shed and not an annexe – then the penny finally dropped.’
Maidstone Council said: ‘Any residents who think their property is banded incorrectly should lodge an appeal with the Valuation Office Agency.’
North Somerset Council would not comment on the specific case of Simon Dyer.
But it said: ‘If the property has been sectioned off from the main property and has its own separate entrance, kitchen, cooker points, sink units and toilet, and can be rented out separately from the main dwelling, then the Valuation Office Agency will deem the property to be a separate entity from the main property and the property will be banded for council tax purposes in its own right.’
The VOA said: ‘If a customer thinks that part or all of their property is banded incorrectly, then they can contact us to request a deletion.’
- Have you had your council tax band changed? Please email us at money@mailonsunday.co.uk
