AIBU for not letting my lodger go on the council tax bill?

[Georgeoftheinternet]

She’s under the assumption it will give her magical powers with regards to residency and it’s a better utility bill. I’ve already put her on the water and electric (2 by mistake) and she keeps on asking me to put her on the council tax.

She’s got an eu passport but from South America. Wants residency.

I’ve told her to get on the electoral roll as it’s good for credit checks/finding your last address etc.

I’ve given her a utility bill (was easy to add at 7pm on a Friday night and bill the next day).

She’s under the assumption that it’s going to help her open a bank account and the banks have already told her the water utility bill is fine.

I’ve lived overseas for many years and came back - so I’ve gone through this process.

She’s read that if you are in council tax arrears it can affect your permanent resident status - she’s read this as “if you don’t pay council tax” which she does, as part of her rent.

I’ve told her to get a driving licence as it’s good ID and address.

I just don’t want to feel pressurised into doing stuff because she disbelieves everything I say.

@WhereverIGoddamnLike I’m also not being rude and you are stating information that’s not correct.

@Georgeoftheinternet erm well no. If you stopped paying council tax and she’s liable it’s an imprisonable offence.

If you’re the homeowner surely you know if you get a 25% discount - just check your council tax bill. If she lives with you and you’re claiming it - then you need to sort it.

If she's got an EU passport she's a citizen of an EU country, i don't get the relevance of the south American bit. She should apply under settled status, which is done through national insurance, and passport number. I thought the council tax bill required all people who lived there to be declared?

She could get a credit card/loan using a utility bill in her name at your address. From experience I know that is a pain to sort out.

@MLMbotsgoaway she’s not on the council tax bill which is why I’m not focusing on that. Yes I know it’s a bigger offence and they will chase you for the money.

She’s read on the internet that “if you don’t pay council tax it can affect your residency” to mean if you directly don’t pay it you don’t get residency. I said it means if you are in arrears.

Landlords can live in a property and sublet rooms within that property...

@Eviebeans she can’t even get a mobile phone contract as no U.K. bank account.... and thanks for bringing that up as it’s actually a good point. I will remove her from the bill and won’t provide another bill. Hopefully that will prevent anything more :/

@RaspberryCoulis nope they can’t. They can have lodgers, they can’t have tenants

Ok well I was answering/pondering your actual Aibu which was related to the council tax bill. And obviously could be a good way to say no “well you could go to prison if I don’t pay it”.

@Spannwr1971 she’s got no European address as she lived in Europe for a few months. Wasn’t sure if that had any baring on when she had to fill out her address at the bank and they asked for her last 3 years of address and they could find the eu ones.

The council tax bill just requires it to be paid as far as I know. For example I would live with my parents and they would pay it. I’ve stayed with friends and they would pay it. When I lived in HMOs the landlord would just pay it. I don’t know, might be worth researching.

I did ask a hmo landlord about it and he said the name on the bill is whoever is liable and that I would just need to go on the electoral roll as then it’s better. He was right. Got a mortgage.

@MLMbotsgoaway yes good idea!

I used to work in Council Tax and by law you can't add a live in lodger to the bill. There is a hierarchy of liability (who is named on the bill) and you as the owner are the named bill holder. Your lodger would be noted on record as being an occupant over 18.

I wouldn't put someone on my utilities bills, whilst it is unlikely they may be able to change the tariff, get a refund if you've overpaid a direct debit or switch providers.

It may allow her to open a bank account that could be used for money laundering (and the you may appear complicit) and having already fraudulently obtained finance that won't help you either.

It just doesn't make sense to me. It would concern me why she was so eager.

If she has an EU passport but is from South America and you know about this you will be storing up problems for yourself as chances are she is not legally entitled to the EU passport and you could get dragged into it when the UK officially leaves the EU on 31 Dec 2020. She will be trying to claim residency on the basis of being an EU citizen.

You need to tell the council and stop claiming the single person discount. Definitely don't put her on bills, give her a lodger agreement, nothing more!

@YellowBeryl1 why are you assuming I’m claiming the single persons rent?

@Farle29 she has an eu passport, she’s lived in the EU, she attends a local college as an eu citizen. She has a job at a high street chain. She’s here legally.

Brexit will mean changes and she will have to apply for stuff.

@OneRingToRuleThemAll thank you. Yes that makes sense, isn’t the owner of the property liable? And they can pass down this liability if they have tenants? (There are forms to fill out).

I have my lodger on one bill that he pays as part of his rent and he can then use that as proof of address and to improve his credit rating. It happens to be the council tax bill, both he and my spouse are named on it.

I wouldn't put him on several though and not on ones he wasn't directly paying.

Yes, it's pretty easy to change the name on utilities and most things really if you have access to an account - HMRC allows name changes with no ID (but if you use it for fraud, you're just shooting yourself in the foot).

For proof of residency, only certain kinds of paperwork are accepted. Utilities can be (not always) though personally I recommend for proof of residency to go with keeping bank statements, tenancy agreements for renters (you may be asked to write a letter for the dates she's lived with you), anything from schools/universities, and if she wants to get citizenship eventually, anything from employers or from the government (including council tax) as those can be the only forms of evidence accepted. If she's hoping to use the (pre)EU settlement scheme, she needs to look through the evidence required rather than collecting at random, from what I've read you can only submit a certain number of pieces of evidence so something weaker/that covers less time like utilities may not be the best idea.

Thank you @bibabbles

I may be completely wrong here but to go on the electoral roll don't you have to have the right to vote here

@Georgeoftheinternet

You get fined for not providing your information to the electoral role, so you actually do need to be on it. If someone chooses not to, then it's a criminal offence.

Also, there is a different between a sub-tenant and a lodger. Landlords can live in the house with their sub tenants.

@WhereverIGoddamnLike you are confusing a tenant with a lodger.

PP is correct about hierachy of liability for council tax. Your lodger should only be noted as a named occupant, which would be on the council's system but her name would not appear on the bill. This council has it listed in case you are interested:
www.merton.gov.uk/council-tax-benefits-and-housing/council-tax/who-has-to-pay-council-tax

@BrieAndChilli

Do you claim single person discount on council tax? If so you have a legal obligation to inform the council as a lodger means you lose this discount. Not sure if that means they put them on the bill or not.

Ah yes, this will be the reason OP doesn’t want her on the council tax account!