Council tax

[Blueisnotmyfavouritecolour]

I've just received a notification that my council tax has gone up since the start of the new year and I'm wondering if they're allowed to do that?

I wasn't working at the start of the year when the original bills got sent out, so obviously got a discount for being a lone parent and unemployed.
I think the bill I received was for just over £700 which is what I was liable for and the rest I assume written off.
I'd had a lump sum off my previous employer so paid £600 council tax and £600 on my rent which is 3 months payments to cover me until I started a new job in june.
I only had one month left to pay on my council tax which I went to pay yesterday and noticed it has gone upto £900 for the rest of the year.

Before I get on the phone to them I was just wondering are they allowed to do that? I've clearly paid what I owed and know that I've now gone back to work so any benefits I did receive will stop, but can they just all of a sudden add on extra payments after giving me a bill and it almost being paid off?

[quote Thelittleweasel]@Blueisnotmyfavouritecolour

"I know what council tax is for, but 9x10 the services that they're meant to be used for are all run down or barely existent"

That is because over the years the central government only allowed local councils to put the CT up by 1.9% rather than the 5% or so that would be needed. We none of us like paying tax but we simply do not pay enough. It's the same with the care system and public services. The police are getting 0% pay rise so that Boris does not increase income tax.[/quote]
Central govt has reduced the grant it makes to local government, too, by about 60% over 10 years, so a greater proportion of the cost of services is met by the council taxpayer.

@memberofthewedding

Council Tax is a bloody scam for single people. You are subsidising all those families with several incomes coming in.

I don't mind subsidising families, those children may well end up being the ones caring for me in my dotage.

I do object to the people in my road who bought houses like mine, small 2-bed semis, who've now extended them so that they are now 4 or 5-bed semis (with "garden rooms" including bathrooms in some cases) but are still paying the same council tax as me.

Surely those properties should have gone up a tax band or 2?

Council tax is a daily charge. If you have a change in your circumstances during the year (I.e a second adult moves in) then your tax is recalculated from the date of change and your instalments will increase. You can always ask to pay over 12 months rather than 10 as well to make your instalments smaller.
In addition - Council Tax Benefit was a national scheme abolished in 2013. Now each council have had to come up with their own Council Tax 'reduction' scheme ever since and each council's scheme will be different. For example even if you are unemployed you may only get a 70% reduction on the tax due - so you'll still be expected to pay something. The details of the scheme your local council operates should be on their website, it has to be made publicly available. There should also be some kind of discretionary hardship scheme for additional help that you could apply for.
As much as I hate paying council tax, councils these days get no funding from central government like they used it, so council tax is the main source is funding for all services - such as adult and children social services, amongst the other more obviously ones like libraries, maintaining local roads and cutting the grass in the park.

And also - if someone extends their house, the council's planning team will notify the valuation office who set the bandings for council tax. Bandings will be increased on a extended property when it next changes ownership. HTH.

@MaskingForIt Yes that's absolutely what I said
You clearly missed the part where I said that I have always worked and paid my dues, including tax, national insurance, council tax and rent so the benefits I was in receipt of for a total of 6 months, I more than paid for myself with the amount of tax I have paid over the last 20 plus years I have worked.
So please don't get your knickers in a bunch.

I am not rich by any standards, I have always just liked to plan ahead and budget very well to be able to afford certain things and sometimes things get thrown in that I haven't budgeted for.

Right now I have covid, so have lost 2 weeks salary which means the things that I budgeted for over the summer will now get put back for a few weeks.

I have always tried to pay my council tax off as soon as I get it, so i can spend on other things or save throughout the year. I also overpay my rent coming up to xmas and birthdays to be able to spend extra without worry.

[quote Thelittleweasel]@Blueisnotmyfavouritecolour

"I know what council tax is for, but 9x10 the services that they're meant to be used for are all run down or barely existent"

That is because over the years the central government only allowed local councils to put the CT up by 1.9% rather than the 5% or so that would be needed. We none of us like paying tax but we simply do not pay enough. It's the same with the care system and public services. The police are getting 0% pay rise so that Boris does not increase income tax.[/quote]
This ^ combined with the Government slashing the money they give to local authorities since 2010 is why services are in such a shocking position.
However, you seem to be arguing against yourself with that one, in that, if the LAs don't have enough money to pay for even a basic level of services to happen properly, then surely you should be advocating for more money to be taken in Council Tax, not less