Paying a "long term empty property premium" on a newly-purchased house!

[CouncilTaxCrazy]

I bought a flat in July 2022. It was partially-furnished with white goods/ wardrobes, but nobody was living there during the sales process.

The flat was empty for six weeks whilst I furnished it. My tenants moved in early-September.

Today, I have been sent a very high council tax bill. It includes a "long term empty property premium"! I phoned the helpline and they said that this charge is correct as the property has been empty for more than 2 years (which I didn't know upon purchase!)

Has anyone successfully appealed this before? If so, how?

You need to share the dates of your ownership (a copy of the land registry will suffice I think). The two years of CT they're after is the responsibility of the person who you bought from. If you're in doubt - ask the solicitors who advised you on the purchase - they'll have seen this before. But it's absolutely not your responsibility to pay, it will be your responsibility when you're in between tenants etc but that's a different matter.

Thanks. The lady on the phone said that the charge is on the house, not the owner? Is this not correct?

I've never heard of council tax being a charge on the property. The liability is on the occupier first and the owner if they're the same / there is no other occupier. But I also haven't been in your exact situation- i'd suggest checking with your conveyancing solicitor and going from there. Am quite sure it's the responsibility of the previous owner.

Presumably you are only paying the portion that relates to the date you became the owner, onwards.

Council tax is payable per property. So if the home is owned, the charge is for the owner to pay. When it's sold, it immediately becomes someone else's so they pay.

Housing associations / landlords pay when the property is vacant for rented.

helpandadvice.co.uk/when-do-you-start-paying-council-tax-after-buying-a-house/

Some good advice on here, also specifically saying you're NOT liable for the previous owner's tax arrears

The empty premium carries on even with a new owner if you don’t actually move in. Crazy

@BernadetteRostankowskiWolowitz yes agreed but they're proposing to charge OP for the previous owner's arrears which isn't correct. She isn't disputing that she needs to pay for the 6 weeks and beyond of her ownership but that she shouldn't be paying for the previous x years of the house being empty before she owned it

Similar but different. Here CT is free for the first 3 months unoccupied, then normal rate until 2 years, then double. I tried to claim the 3 months but was told it doesn't renew with new owners so couldn't! Luckily didn't reach the 2 year point!

@lightsoutminty no, it's not arrears, it's a premium for properties empty for more than 2 years. Here, the council tax is at least double, it increases further as time goes on.

To be clear, the bill is something like this:

Council tax for 6 weeks = £100
Empty home premium = £200
Total = £300

So I am only Being charged for 6 weeks, but with 200% penalty added on!

Some councils allow for a period of CT exemption when property is empty and/or being renovated to the extent it is uninhabitable.
It sounds to me like the previous owners have used up the full allowance given by the council. The period of exemption allowance applies to the property regardless if ownership changes.

YOu need your solicitor to look at this. Eg with annual charges due on a freehold or to a local association for road maintenance the solicitor will deal with partly paid or unpaid/arrears before exchange of contract and it is likely in your case to have been one of the enquiries asked of the seller.

You are only responsible for council tax from the day you purchased the property.

The rest is not your problem. Any arrears are the responsibility of the person who owned the house before you.

OP if the previous owner used up the exemption period for the property being empty, then it is correct that you will be liable to pay the empty home premium for the six weeks you owned the property and it was empty.

The council is correct that the exemption applies to the property, not the owner. The exemption doesn't reset when the property changes ownership (if it did, there would be all sorts of underhand goings on, such as couples repeatedly transferring ownership between themselves to avoid paying the premium on a long term empty property).

This isn't something you can appeal.