Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
Council tax bill - single persons discount
Hi
I just wanted to warn all those who live on their own, and claim the 25% single person discount to check their bill carefully this year. I opened mine, and on top is the usual bill - however, behind that there was a separate letter stating that Haringey Council are doing an audit - and if you don't fill in the form overleaf, and post it back to the council with a stamp, they will assume you now live with someone, and charge the full amount of tax!
I was outraged about this - it also looks like they are hiding the letter, a very good way of them making more money. I'm sure it's bound to trip up a few older, or more vulnerable people out there.
Thanks
Ria
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by John D on
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Not all bumph is bumph.
And the cost of a stamp and envelope is minimal compared to the 25% discount. (In my case, say 50p to gain £2,500 over 10 years ).
If they sent out pre-paid envelopes wouldn't the cost just appear in the Council Tax Bill ? :-)
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Permalink Reply by Kamila on
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What about writing the address on the envelope. I can't write as I broke my wrist. I am doing this using Dictating software and it definitely couldn't cope with spelling the address!! That's only me - there must be loads of people who find it difficult to read English, find an envelope, write the address on it, and go out to the post office (now a mile away) to get a stamp. Not everyone is able-bodied and literate in English and Haringey Council should know this. I have asked my councillors to take this up under equality law.
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Permalink Reply by Alan Stanton on
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A further update on my posting yesterday. The reply I was waiting for was sent on 4 April - but to an internal mailbox instead of to me. I've copied it in full below.
Personally, I found the response a bit disappointing. I fully agree with ensuring, as far as possible, that residents not entitled to the Single Person Discount (SPD) shouldn't get it. But fairness demands the opposite as well.
I'm glad to see that: " . . . those who do not return their form will be issued with a reminder before any discount is withdrawn". And also that they're considering having ". . . a message included on the front of the envelope drawing taxpayers notice to its content". So some HoL members' comments have made a difference. I'll ask for confirmation that these will be in the main community languages.
I also wonder how far it's cost-effective to reinstate the SPD later for people who were entitled and who have to make a new claim. Intuitively it seems that it's always better to get things right in the first place. Though sometimes a counter-intuitive answer can be correct.
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4 April 2011
Dear Councillor Stanton
Council Tax: Single Person Discount Review
Thank you for your e mail dated 22 March 2011 and for bringing to my attention the comments left on the Harringay Online website.
Single Person Discount (SPD) is a statutory relief available to Council Tax payers where only one adult is resident at the property. The value of the single persons discount is significant. Haringey currently awards SPD to 34,824 residents. Based on a Band D property, the SPD is £373.54 per recipient giving a total cost to the Council Tax collection fund of £13,008,156.96.
Billing authorities are under a duty to take ‘reasonable steps’ to ascertain discount entitlement before calculating the council tax liability. This requirement arises from Regulation 14 Council Tax (Administration and Enforcement) Regulations 1992) (S.I.1992/613), and Authorities must, therefore, undertake procedures to check on the possibility of discount.
Every year, we receive a high volume of applications for SPD. Unfortunately it has been proven that some of these applications are not genuine and, whilst the Local Taxation Service has strong controls in place, it is important that the Council is seen to be taking steps to ensure that every resident is paying the correct amount of council tax.
The Council also has a legal requirement to review discounts annually. All council tax bills are annotated with the following message ‘If your circumstances change you may no longer be entitled to any discount or exemption shown on this bill and must tell us immediately’. Unfortunately, this approach has not always proved to be effective as a number of taxpayers still fail to advise us of the change to their circumstances.
When deciding on a strategy to review SPD for 2011/2012, the Local Taxation Service decided to issue a separate review form to ensure that our records are as up to date as possible. There are sound financial reasons for including the review form with the Annual Bill as it was deemed to be the most cost effective way of contacting those concerned - thus saving on additional paper, printing and postage costs at a later point in the year. Additionally, reviewing accounts early in the financial year means that those taxpayers whose discount is withdrawn due to a change in their circumstances have more time to repay any discount they are not entitled to.
Having read the comments on the website I must confess that I am disappointed that a number of subscribers appear to suggest that they have either not opened or properly read the correspondence sent to them. Please be assured that there was no intention to hide the review form in an attempt to raise additional income as some have suggested on the website. In fact those who do not return their form will be issued with a reminder before any discount is withdrawn. If a discount ends up being withdrawn as a result of a failure to return the form, the taxpayer will be sent a bill detailing the change of liability. If they are indeed still entitled to the discount they will be able to submit a new claim for SPD, and, once all the relevant checks have been undertaken, the discount will be reinstated as appropriate.
Finally, the information you have provided us has of course proved us with valuable feedback on the way that we conduct our SPD reviews and we will certainly consider ways on ensuring that future contact promotes the inclusion of and importance of returning SPD review forms within the prescribed timescale.
As a result of your e mail we are looking at how much it might cost to have a message included on the front of the envelope drawing taxpayers notice to its content.
I hope the above clarifies the position regarding the single persons discount review and allays any concerns you may have.
Should you have any further queries or suggestions as to how we can improve communication with our taxpayers please do not hesitate to contact me.
Yours sincerely
Head of Benefits and Local Taxation
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Permalink Reply by Concetta on
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I never got a booklet and form in the post, but read about the review on the council website and here. I called them and explained that I didn't have the form, they said I could email council.tax@haringey.gov.uk to confirm my status. Haven't heard back from them yet, but I hope that means it's sorted.
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"The miserable have no other medicine
But only hope." (Shakespeare)So don't rely on hope, Concetta, ask for confirmation.
_________________________________
By the way I noticed that West Devon, clearly a go-ahead, cutting edge Council, have
an online form for residents to apply for the Discount.
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Of course, I will. But since I emailed them only this morning, I will cut them a little slack!
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Actually, Alan, West Devon have legally incorrect information on their web site to the effect that one cannot be entitled to a 'single occupier discount' if more than one adult is resident. The facts of the law (as explained for example in a letter from Bob Neill Undersecretary of State at the DCLG to the Guardian newspaper, is that entitlement to what in LAW is called a discount of the appropriate amount arises on any day when only one adult who 'counts' has his or her sole or main residence at the chargeable dwelling.
There is rather a good Audit Commission Legal Briefing on council tax discount law somewhere on the internet dated February 2009 and produced by a lawyer called Leah Griffiths.
It is of course inappropriate for any council, be it Haringey or West Devon to provide misinformation to residents (and in this case about them as well).
If you have time to look about West Devon's web site you will see that it does explain that some people are 'disregarded' ie not counted as residents.
I note that the council is talking of 'withdrawing' a discount. The law applying here varies depending upon the time of year, though at all times there is entitlement to a Tribunal appeal if the council gets it wrong. Once a council has issued you demand notice they should only issue an adjusted demand notice if it proves that you are no longer entitled to a discount of the appropriate amount (ie 25%). If your council 'cancels' your discount and immediately replaces it with what it seems to think is a 'different' discount on a 'different' basis, then the council is clearly doing something wrong.
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As it happens, there is in law no such thing as a 'single person discount' as this term is commonly misunderstood.
The response on this site from the Head of Benefits and Local Taxation to Councillor Stanton is misleading.
It is true that the council tells people they have to inform the council
‘If your circumstances change you may no longer be entitled to any discount or exemption shown on this bill and must tell us immediately’.
but in doing this the council is merely putting out misleading information, which is a pity since council taxation regulations are quite clear about the information required from the discount recipient and it is not as Haringey states it.
Put briefly, in law, as opposed to misleading nicknames, this is a discount of the appropriate amount and it applies on any day when only one countable adult has his or her sole or main residence at the chargeable dwelling. In law the demand notice must be issued on the assumption that the same rate will apply on every day of the coming year, and the duty of the taxpayer is to correct this assumption if it proves to be wrong. The law specifies that the taxpayer must be informed of this assumption. See the administrative schedule to the Act. The duty to inform the council is not a duty to report any changes in circumstances per se. All you need to do is tell the council you are not entitled to a 25% discount. At this point the council may perhaps wonder whether any new or newly adult resident is a liable adult, and you can be fined for not telling it if the other person is when they ask. A live in partner will always be jointly or severally liable.
Haringey also tells people they must 'register' for poll tax if they move into the Borough. As it happens the Local Governent Ombudsman has had a go at one council for telling a person this, because it simply is not true. There has been no such thing as a local taxation register since the poll tax was abolished.
You need to check whether your annual demand notices contain the information about the assumption under Regulations 20(3)(f) and 15 which it should contain. But it seems that Haringey may not even be making these assumptions, in which case a formal complaint might be in order
I hope this is useful.
Discount 'reviews' are, it would appear, in fact statistically based fraud investigations. They have used data mining to identify you as potentially suspicious and you are expected to eliminate yourself from suspicion in one of several ways eg by proving an additional resident is disregarded, has their sole or main residence elsewhere etc.
In the event of the council issuing you with a demand notice for money you do not owe, there is a right of appeal to a valuation tribunal. The demand notice should by law explain this to you. It should also explain the conditions in which a discount of what the law calls the appropriate amount under Section 11(1) of the Local Government Finance Act apply.
I hope this is helpful to you.
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Permalink Reply by pamish on
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It's not that well publicised that someone with a diagnosis of dementia is exempt from council tax.
Wish we'd known that for the last 2 years re my M-I-L.
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