Council tax very unfair to single people

[Lettuceandtomatoes]

The council tax for my area is £1800 full whack, a single person 25% off. I pay £140 a month which is ok until I realised the three adults next door are paying £60 pounds each and a couple paying £90 each. So why this inequality aimed at single people, picking up the tab?

Then there could be another option, if you haven't tried this already

https://www.ofwat.gov.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/prs_lft_101117meters.pdf

On page 15 :

"If your company says that it cannot fit a meter at your property, it should explain why it is impractical or too expensive to do so. If you disagree with your company’s decision not to install a meter, you can ask us to investigate this on your behalf and make a decision. Our contact details are on page 25.

"Your company should also offer you the option to switch to an ‘assessed charge’. This is an estimate of what your metered bill might have been had a meter been installed.

"You will need to compare the assessed charge with your current bill to decide if you will save money. Your company will be able to give you more information. "

@whatkatydid2014 it's not a bill; it's a tax.

(It goes into more detail on the following pages)

I live in Wales. Council tax here is determined by the price of your property and not per person. A single person could be earning more than a couple, then how would that be fair ?.

@Umbrella15 council tax is assessed by property value in England too, and not per person. The original point (I think, I may have got this wrong 300 posts in) is the big question: do you tax people per head, or on their earnings? Some will earn little or nothing and claim everything. And some will bend backwards to offset what they need to accept from the public purse to feed their children. It's not ever straightforward.

They tried that. It was called Poll Tax and the backlash against it was immense and caused riots.

It’s part of the old adage that “two can live (nearly) as cheaply as one”. Unfortunately, as I’m single and live alone. You could say that poorer, single, childless people are hit the worst in relation to taxes.

MY DM, who lived in Sheffield during the change from rates to poll tax, when Sheffield had among the highest rates nationally, was thrilled with the poll tax. Charged per capita (bearing in mind that she was renting a flat) her charge dropped from £2500 pa (or thereabouts, IDK) to £600. SHe was a widow, paying it all herself.

Hotels can be a little more pricey as a singleton.

You certainly don't get the duvet to yourself as a singleton, why would the cat be giving its share up?

In Scotland, single people also get a 25% discount off their water bill (which is collected by the local council along with the council tax).

Cool story bro.

I live in Birmingham.

Where we have a bankrupt council that’s been failing us for years in local services, but who have decided to increase our council tax by 10% for the next 2 years, whilst telling us they are reducing most of the services they provide. From reduction in social care and even down to reducing street lighting.

So no, things aren’t being funded here and they won’t be funded going forward from our massive council tax price hikes, because that money is being used to plug the gap of cash that Birmingham City Council spunked up the wall for failed IT systems and not bothering with equal pay for years.

Go on a water meter? I have one, give a meter read once a month and literally just pay for what I use, bill was £22 this month.

Hmm. I wonder why? I bet they'd fit one quick smart if it would net them more money.

Can you raise it with Ofwat? We're in a 3 bed terrace and ours is about £350 a year. £600 seems overkill for a 2 bed flat.

It’s an infuriating system, plus it assumes the size of your house dictates your use of the services so me, DH and 2 DC under 4 in a 5 bed house pay £4k a year but a few mile down the road in a 3 bed terrace where Chantel, Dave and their 6 teenage DC live, they don’t pay anything because none of them earn a living. We therefore have to subsidise them not paying anything at all because the council still needs funds to run. But I bet my bottom dollar they would need more council services and public services than we do.
It needs a total overhaul, I feel Martin Lewis should be brought in to devise a much fair system

They did in the 90's it was called the poll tax...

Council tax is an outdated regressive tax that punishes lower earners the most. It should be formulated on ability to pay, not wildly outdated house prices. People in very small properties pay disproportionately more than people in larger properties. That’s utterly nonsensical.

The lowest band in my area is now £140 a month or approx £1400 a year. It’s a huge hit for low earners in small properties. The average wage in my county is one of the lowest in the U.K. Council tax support has been reduced too, so people on UC have to pay something towards their council tax in most circumstances too.

It’s a huge outgoing that many struggle with. In my case it’s second only to my rent. Plus there is next to no support available if you are struggling to pay it. The council advise you to prioritise paying your council tax. They want their money. But they’re perfectly happy for you to get into arrears with other bills instead. Just not council tax.

Most high tax countries have great public services. I don’t think people would object to taxes if we actually saw an improvement in public services. As it stands, we are expected to pay a wide variety of taxes while everything is crumbling. The roads here are absolutely littered with huge pot holes, our bins are only collected every 3 weeks, all public toilets have closed & you never see the police. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg. We really are living in rip-off Britain where simply existing is becoming a challenge.

The council advise you to prioritise paying your council tax. They want their money. But they’re perfectly happy for you to get into arrears with other bills instead. Just not council tax

That’s because you can be imprisoned for non payment. That isn’t the case for other bills.

Yes, unfortunately I’m well aware you can be prosecuted. One missed payment results in threats of prosecution from my local council. It’s rather heavy handed imo. I experienced this when recovering from surgery on SSP. Was absolutely nothing I could do about it. Prison felt like a better option, at least I wouldn’t be hounded for money I didn’t have there.

From my perspective, if someone is in financial difficulty getting into arrears with other bills is not the answer either. I feel it’s poor advice from councils. There should be options available if you are struggling to pay council tax, particularly as it’s typically one of the largest outgoings for people after mortgage/rent. Getting into arrears elsewhere just to pay your council tax is simply shunting the problem & isn’t helpful. Further, this advice makes it clear that councils couldn’t give a damn if you are struggling to pay your council tax. They want their money. Even if that means people are getting into arrears with other important bills e.g. gas & electric.

But when they brought in the poll tax, where every adult paid the same,not based on house size or price there were riots. I thought it was a fair way of paying.

It's also a bit underhand of them to refer to it as a bill because it's not a bill, it's a tax. That's why you go to jail if you don't pay it.

It’s 50% for the property and 50% based on 2 sharing, thus 25% discount if only one adult in property
.

if it was all on the property then they’d now be the discount

op U.K. tried pill tax on the person and there were riots in the streets

the idea was you’d pay per person - so £400 each, it didn’t go well

It’s hardly underhand when it’s literally called Council Tax.

But referring to it as a bill undermines that.

Council tax in our area is disgraceful IMO.

It costs £300/month for a property over £160k in value. A property that you buy for £160k would put you in the second highest tax bracket.

Except… try finding ANY property for £160k here! Even the cheapest two bed terraces are £180k plus.

I am not sure if the brackets are enforced against only new properties though… but a modest 3 bed new build would put you in the highest bracket which seems crazy to me when there are several £1m houses paying the same amount!

It doesn’t. People refer to their tax bill all the time - meaning their income tax.