Page 24 | Council tax is a c**t

TheNightingalesStarling · 08/12/2025 22:47

murasaki · 08/12/2025 22:40

And so can your neighbours....

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Which is why no one is saying anything as one of the Band A properties is a couple in their 80s.

The Cs are probably right (they are newer) the As should probably be Bs.

OopOop · 08/12/2025 22:47

murasaki · 08/12/2025 22:38

I'm happy to pay on a per person basis for that.

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And for police and fire services? Social care? Libraries and educational services? Roads and transport? Parks and leisure? Registrar services? Social housing? Planning and environmental health? You would pay on a ‘per person’ basis for all of those things? So a call out charge if you had to ring the police, for example? Entry fee to local council run parks and playgrounds? Entry fee to your local library?

SlipperyLizard · 08/12/2025 22:44

PigeonsandSquirrels · 08/12/2025 22:25

I thought they couldn’t revalue properties until they sold again?

‘The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) in England and Wales or the Assessor in Scotland cannot legally change your property's council tax band due to improvements until the property is sold or a general revaluation occurs.’

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That’s the general rule, except when an annexe is created (link and screenshot)

https://valuationoffice.blog.gov.uk/2023/07/13/how-home-improvements-affect-your-council-tax-band/

SabreIsMyFave · 08/12/2025 22:42

Joking apart @Upholstery if you're struggling, you can apply for help with council tax. Not sure if you need to be in receipt of housing benefit to apply, but you could try....

SabreIsMyFave · 08/12/2025 22:41

Upholstery · 08/12/2025 21:13

What kind of a tax doesn't take account of how much money you have? It's all just a bloody con.

YANBU, and you have made me almost PMSL with this thread title 😆

NebulousWhistler · 08/12/2025 22:41

There’s a road close to me that is split in two mid way down. One is run by one council and the other is run by a second council. One half of the street pays literally double the council tax of the other.

murasaki · 08/12/2025 22:40

Shelbellsanddoodles · 08/12/2025 22:39

But they shouldn't and you can ask for a review to check on that - but if you're the A be aware that after an appeal bandings can go up as well as down.

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And so can your neighbours....

Shelbellsanddoodles · 08/12/2025 22:39

TheNightingalesStarling · 08/12/2025 22:36

In our street of 7 houses, all reasonably similar size... we vary from Band A to Band C.

But they shouldn't and you can ask for a review to check on that - but if you're the A be aware that after an appeal bandings can go up as well as down.

nomas · 08/12/2025 22:39

TheNightingalesStarling · 08/12/2025 22:36

In our street of 7 houses, all reasonably similar size... we vary from Band A to Band C.

If I was band C on your road, I would be appealing to be band A.

murasaki · 08/12/2025 22:38

OopOop · 08/12/2025 22:33

So you don’t have your bins collected?

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I'm happy to pay on a per person basis for that.

TheNightingalesStarling · 08/12/2025 22:36

In our street of 7 houses, all reasonably similar size... we vary from Band A to Band C.

nomas · 08/12/2025 22:34

Council tax seems to be a ticking time bomb.

The number of school pupils with EHCPs has risen by 71% between 2018 and 2024.

School transport for SEND is nearly £2 billion per annum.

My local council's High Needs bill for children is nearly £100m per year.

The county councils network is predicting a "total collapse" unless there are reforms.

user789543678885432111 · 08/12/2025 22:33

Every single tax except income tax. It’s literally the only fair way to make people pay their share, but every government is scared to increase it.

OopOop · 08/12/2025 22:33

murasaki · 08/12/2025 22:10

I rent, so I don't own the asset, I'm with you, OP.

So you don’t have your bins collected?

Keepingthingsinteresting · 08/12/2025 22:33

Upholstery · 08/12/2025 22:01

But millionaires aren't paying their share now and haven't done for decades! Why am I paying more tax for a tiny two bed flat that I don't even own than a CEO with a house in Westminster?

And my flat is as band C, as all two bedroom flats built after 1998 are round here, automatically, because they of this "assigning value" nonsense. So I'm even paying more than someone else in the area who lives in a bloody house! That they own!

I don’t understand why you keep saying you don’t own it… council tax is payable by the occupier who (at least theoretically) consumes the services. Are you saying because you rent you shouldn’t contribute towards having your bins collected, local roads,other council services? That makes no sense.

Bluefloor · 08/12/2025 22:32

there are all sorts of discount / exemptions you can apply for

GrooveArmada · 08/12/2025 22:31

olderandnonthewiser · 08/12/2025 22:27

I’d prefer the poll tax. It’s a service. We should all pay the same for what we get.
I pay more than my neighbour who has 4 kids at home. I pay less than another who has a slightly smaller house (in the same street). All our services are identical.

The services aren't the same though. If you look at education and social care needs, they are the highest LA expenditure across England and Wales, your neighbours are likely using and benefitting far more than you do under the current system.

Mydoglovescheese · 08/12/2025 22:31

@HeddaGarbledMy parents rented and also paid rates. I don’t think it was just homeowners.

ThisLittlePony · 08/12/2025 22:30

LVhandbagsatdawn · 08/12/2025 22:29

You could always pay for your own waste disposal I suppose. And pay for your own children's education. And your own private security. And so on.

You'll probably find council tax is cheaper on the whole.

How would those that don’t work and have an income pay for these things?

XenoBitch · 08/12/2025 22:30

HellsAngel81 · 08/12/2025 22:02

YANBU op! And don't get me started on the paltry single person's discount 😤

Yeah, a family of adults (or house sharers) can share the cost of CT, and be paying way less each than me with my single person's discount.
I can also see the logic in being taxed per person, rather than per house.

I have no issue with paying towards services though. It is not just about bins being collected, it is things we all use like the police etc too.

LVhandbagsatdawn · 08/12/2025 22:29

You could always pay for your own waste disposal I suppose. And pay for your own children's education. And your own private security. And so on.

You'll probably find council tax is cheaper on the whole.

olderandnonthewiser · 08/12/2025 22:27

I’d prefer the poll tax. It’s a service. We should all pay the same for what we get.
I pay more than my neighbour who has 4 kids at home. I pay less than another who has a slightly smaller house (in the same street). All our services are identical.

daffodilandtulip · 08/12/2025 22:25

I'm self employed but have contracts with the council. They always pay late. Once I asked them if I could pay my council tax late as I was waiting for them to pay me. They laughed and told me it didn't work like that.

PigeonsandSquirrels · 08/12/2025 22:25

SlipperyLizard · 08/12/2025 22:20

My mum built a granny annexe after we did our loft conversion, little did I know that would give the council the opportunity to revalue and boom!, band G and £100 more a month in council tax 😫

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I thought they couldn’t revalue properties until they sold again?

‘The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) in England and Wales or the Assessor in Scotland cannot legally change your property's council tax band due to improvements until the property is sold or a general revaluation occurs.’

HeddaGarbled · 08/12/2025 22:24

Ah, you need to understand where it came from. In the olden days, we used to pay “rates”, but only home owners paid them. Anyone who wasn’t a home owner, didn’t pay for local services but benefited from them (some say disproportionately as poor people were more likely to be using community groups and facilities).

So, the Conservative government under Margaret Thatcher came up with the Community Charge (popularly known as the poll tax) which everyone would pay regardless of income.

My dear, there were riots! It’s commonly thought of as the main thing that ended her premiership and people still talk about Prime Ministers’ “Poll tax moment”.

Council tax is what they cobbled together in a panic and no politician dares go anywhere near it now.