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Original poster

Anyone questioned Council tax band ?

65 replies

Hopthegoodgod · 29/12/2025 07:39

I am convinced my banding for council tax is incorrect. I am currently band G but other compatible properties in the area are band F. I have filled in the Martin Lewis template letter and submitted to Valuation office Agency. Has anyone successfully challenged their band and got a back dated reduction?

OP posts:
Barrellturn · 29/12/2025 07:41

I would like to but my understanding is that it is far more likely the rest of the houses will just be rebanded to the higher band because they've all been extended since the last banding and all your neighbours will despise you.

notgivinga · 29/12/2025 07:44

Yes I did years ago and a valuer came and the band was changed. If I remember rightly I didn’t pay any council tax for around 2 years and then I went down a band. It was a long time ago so my memory is a bit sketchy but it definitely worked.

jasflowers · 29/12/2025 07:47

Got mine changed from a D to C but i had specific justification due to its non standard build.

Yes the danger is other properties get re-banded and you wont be popular....

Frikadelle · 29/12/2025 07:48

We were in a similar situation to you, our house being one band higher than most others on the street. I filled out the form and the band was reduced. It was a surprisingly straight forward process.

ThirdStorm · 29/12/2025 08:00

Yes, went E to D. Got a refund on the difference to back when I brought it 12 years ago. I had lots of examples of other Es being larger than my house and lots of Ds being the same floor plan (thank you rightmove!). Good luck.

autumnboys · 29/12/2025 08:03

Yes, someone in out road successfully did it and then cascaded it out to everyone else.

TheTwenties · 29/12/2025 08:16

For those saying neighbours may go up as a result of investigations has anyone any actual evidence of this happening? My understanding was banding could go down if challenged successfully but the only way a property can go up is if either it’s removed from the register and re registered (various reasons for that), has a marker added following renovation which only comes into play when the house is subsequently sold or there’s a full scale re evaluation nationwide which was supposed to happen every 10 years and hasn’t happened since CT introduction in something like 1991.

Zippedydodah · 29/12/2025 08:17

notgivinga · 29/12/2025 07:44

Yes I did years ago and a valuer came and the band was changed. If I remember rightly I didn’t pay any council tax for around 2 years and then I went down a band. It was a long time ago so my memory is a bit sketchy but it definitely worked.

Me too, about 10 years ago. It was a very simple process.

Pipsquiggle · 29/12/2025 08:50

Someone on our old street did this and the whole street was rebanded higher so just be aware it can go the other way

Andtheworldwentwhite · 29/12/2025 08:52

We are in a different band from the rest of the street. The only one. We were cheaper though so not really willing to push anything.

Dolphinnoises · 29/12/2025 08:54

Yes, I did many years ago but it was a straightforward cock-up. I’d moved into a new studio conversion which had a two bedroom flat next door. I discovered that they were in a lower band than me when the bands came through. Contacted them and told them I thought they had it the wrong way round and got a correction.

MovingSwiftlyOn · 29/12/2025 08:59

I did, successfully from E to D, our local authority stated it can only be challenged within a set time (I think 6 months) from moving in, so I did, straight away. It was a only a two bedroom semi, the council had no records on the property at all.

gogomomo2 · 29/12/2025 09:04

Someone on my parents road did and they got 9 years of refund, they had since moved and the council had to seek them out - my parents took all of us on holiday with the money they got back it was so much (uk cottage)

gogomomo2 · 29/12/2025 09:05

That is someone challenged and everyone with that house footprint got the refund

Moussell · 29/12/2025 09:09

Yes was rebranded from D to C. Our NDN was on C, as were people in adjacent streets with exactly the same houses. We did get some backdated. The houses in the street were very variable so I don’t think anything changed for them.

Luluco · 29/12/2025 09:11

I disputed mine a few years back. Our side of the road was a tax band higher than the houses opposite ( exactly the same house). The LA refused at first stating our house had more detail and character and was worth more ( absolutely ridiculous ). I disputed this again and received a refund of the overpaid council tax back to the date we moved into the house and a reduction in band. My neighbour also did the same. I did have to provide a lot of evidence though on sale prices etc.

OnePearlHelper · 29/12/2025 09:16

I did, I only rented a two bed semi but next doors CT band was lower, it was really straightforward and it didn’t affect the other properties on the street because they was all variable.

EvangelinaMae · 29/12/2025 09:26

When I did it, you could only do it within so many months of purchase. They wouldn't amend my band as it was band b and band a was flats. But my 2 up 2 down is in the same band as my husbands 11 room, 4 floor Victorian townhouse 🙄🙄🙄

Dutchhouse14 · 29/12/2025 10:18

Yes i did a few years ago now.
We live in a semi and our neighbour was in a lower council tax band than us.
I put off doing it as was worried that hers would go up rather than mine go down but it was ok and we got the lower band and a back dated refund so defintely worth appealing.

MikeRafone · 29/12/2025 10:24

Yes, I did this 3 years ago

i I found 5 properties that were the same size, bedroom number and submitted them to the valuation office. I may have helped that the house next door was identical apart from small extension and a lower band.

they lowered my band and told my district council

who then refunded me the difference for the years I had been living there and the previous occupant when they applied

bowchicawowwow · 29/12/2025 10:25

I have. We’ve had a letter back from the valuation office saying that their initial review agrees mine should be B rated rather than C, but there will be a wait of at least a year before it goes for a final review and any repayment issued.

GasPanic · 29/12/2025 10:33

I guess it will all depend on the strength of the evidence you can submit.

House valuation is not an exact science.

OnlyReplyToIdiots · 29/12/2025 10:43

TheTwenties · 29/12/2025 08:16

For those saying neighbours may go up as a result of investigations has anyone any actual evidence of this happening? My understanding was banding could go down if challenged successfully but the only way a property can go up is if either it’s removed from the register and re registered (various reasons for that), has a marker added following renovation which only comes into play when the house is subsequently sold or there’s a full scale re evaluation nationwide which was supposed to happen every 10 years and hasn’t happened since CT introduction in something like 1991.

Happened to me.

New build estate, our was the only one if a certain house type and price which was a higher band - two bands higher, not even one.

We appealed… all our neighbours got a letter saying that theirs were being rebanded to the same as ours. We weren’t named and when asked told our neighbours we got the same letter so they don’t all hate us.

GasPanic · 29/12/2025 11:23

OnlyReplyToIdiots · 29/12/2025 10:43

Happened to me.

New build estate, our was the only one if a certain house type and price which was a higher band - two bands higher, not even one.

We appealed… all our neighbours got a letter saying that theirs were being rebanded to the same as ours. We weren’t named and when asked told our neighbours we got the same letter so they don’t all hate us.

Show quote history

They'd probably be able to find out that yours was the higher band at some point and theirs wasn't as I think bands and rebanding of individual houses is public knowledge.

I don't think they could find out that it was your application that started the rebanding though.

So probably always wise to keep your mouth shut to the neighbours if you are contemplating applying for rebanding.

ExperiencedTeacher · 29/12/2025 11:29

A family member has just done this and it has been agreed and back dated 10 years. He has just moved in but previous owner can make a claim which will be worth ££££