How Do Council Tax Bands Affect Council Tax Debt?

This article looks at how do Council Tax Bands affect Council Tax Debt.

Council Tax Bands, also known as valuation bands, are calculated by taking into account the value of your property. The higher the value of your property, the higher the Council Tax Band will be. The Council Tax Band determines how much Council Tax you will need to pay.

What Is A Council Tax Band?

A Council Tax Band determines the amount of Council Tax you have to pay.

Where Do I Check My Council Tax Band?

The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) deals with valuations in England and Wales, while in Scotland, it is the Scottish Assessors Association. The value is based on the price the property would have sold for in April 1991 in England and Scotland, and April 2003 in Wales.

You can check the Council Tax Band of your house through:

Gov.uk – If you live in England and Wales.
Scottish Assessors Association’s website – If you live in Scotland.
Your local council.
Your Council Tax bill.

How Is Council Tax Band Assessed?

These depend on several factors, such as a property’s:

size
layout
character
location
change in use

An increase in the size of the building could move it to a higher band.

Will All Buildings Have a Band?

A property will be put in a band if it meets the criteria of a ‘dwelling’, so that means it can be liveable and repaired. If the building used to be a warehouse, but was transformed into a house, it will need to have a Council Tax Band.

Removal of a property from a Council Tax Band happens if people cannot live there, because it is not a dwelling anymore.

The taxpayer will not have to pay Council Tax during this period. When put back into a band, it will be a new property and all improvements will revolve around the new banding, from the date of completion of work.

VOA Visits

When the VOA did not get enough information about a property, they will arrange a 10-30 minutes visit, at your convenience. Inspections will only take place with the consent of the property’s occupant. During the visit, VOA will follow the government’s “Power of entry: code of practice” guidelines, and will bring identity cards with their photograph. Contact Gov.uk (if you live in England and Wales), or mygov.scot (if you live in Scotland), if you have any concerns.

Council Tax Band Appeal

When you believe a band is wrong, you can appeal against it.

England and Wales

Write to your local council to appeal.

The VOA will review your band if there are changes in your:

property
property’s use
local area
If you have paid Council Tax in the last 6 months

It can take 28 days or more for the VOA to assess your challenge. You can appeal to the Valuation Tribunal when you are unhappy with the outcome of the appeal. They can consider your appeal if you pay Council Tax for your property for less than 6 months. For those paying for over 6 months, they will review your band based on the criteria mentioned above.

Scotland

It is more appropriate to contact your local assessor. If you want to make a formal appeal, go to the ‘Make a Proposal’ section of the Scottish Assessors Association website.

If you are in Band A, they cannot reduce the band.

You can submit an appeal within 6 months of:

becoming a new Council Tax payer on a property
the local assessor informing you of a change in your band.
your property is demolished
huge changes happened in your local area that has affected the value of your home as of 1 April 1991
your property has been changed for a disabled person.

If you are unhappy with the decision, you can appeal to the valuation appeal committee.