Council Tax Single Person Discount will be checked

Checks will soon be made on council tax payers who are single occupancy residents and therefore have their bills reduced by 25 per cent.

The check is part of Wyre Forest District Council's continuing measure to protect the public purse by preventing and detecting fraud, in association with the National Fraud Initiative.

The Council has appointed Capita Local Government Services to undertake the comprehensive review of single person discounts. They will work with Equifax, the credit reference agency, in using up-to-the-minute data-matching technology to identify where people are possibly claiming a discount on their Council Tax payments but they are not entitled. The full review will involve around 8,000 to 9,000 taxpayers.

An average Band D property has a current annual liability of £1,506.36 a Single Persons Discount of 25% equates to £376.59.  Any Taxpayer not entitled to this Discount is costing the Council and their fellow Taxpayers £376.59 in lost revenue which ultimately affects the service the Council provides.

Councillor Nathan Desmond, Wyre Forest District Council's Cabinet Member for Resources said

"The single person discount is an entitlement that the Council is keen to ensure is claimed by taxpayers who are genuinely allowed. However, taxpayers who claim the discount improperly place an unnecessary burden on other residents."

Any taxpayers currently receiving a discount which they feel may not be correct are urged to contact the council on 01562 732928 before the full review begins later in August.

Date of issue - 22nd July 2010