Are you paying the right council tax?

The National Fraud Intelligence Bureau has been warning about a new scam, where fraudsters cold call people, convince them they have been overpaying their counciltax for years, and say that as long as they hand over an 'administration fee', they can get a tax rebate.

Of course, once they pay this 'fee' they never hear from the scammers again, and certainly never get a rebate.

The scam

This scam is particularly nasty, because not only is it stealing from individuals, but it also risks confusing people into thinking they can never get a rebate on their council tax.

It's worth being wise to the scam, and understanding that nobody legitimate will ever contact you out of the blue to tell you that you could be due a rebate. If you receive an email or phone call promising this, therefore, you should report it to Action Fraud and refuse to hand over any money.

Check your council tax
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It's also worth finding out your position on council tax, and whether you are due any money back. The process isn't too tricky: some 12.380 people successfully appealed for a refund last year.

The appeals are based on people questioning the council tax band they have been put in. The bands are labelled A-H (where H includes the most expensive houses), and your property will have been put in a band based on what the council thought the property was worth in 1991. The Valuation Office lets you input your postcode on its website, and it will list the band your property is in - along with those of other properties that share your postcode.

You can then compare it to other postcodes nearby featuring properties you consider to be of a similar value to yours. If you have been put in a higher band than you think is right, you can appeal. If you are successful, then not only will you pay less council tax in future, but you may also get a rebate for the sums you have overpaid in the past.

There's only one consideration before you do this: of the thousands of people who appealed their council tax band last year, 20 of them were told that the value of their property had been underestimated, and as a result they actually saw their bills increase.

If you think you are in the correct band, you should also double-check whether there is any other way you can bring your council tax bill down instead.

Different councils operate different rules, but most will offer a discount of around 25% if you live alone - or with no other adults. Even if you live with another adult, you may still get a discount if they fit into a number of categories, including apprentices, full-time students and student nurses, live-in carers, and people with severe mental impairment. Some councils also offer discounts for second homes, and for people paying by direct debit.

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