Scam watch: the council tax band ruse

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I think that is a very pessimistic outlook Duncan. History tells us that exploitation of the vulnerable has been going on for as long as human society has existed. It is more sophisticated now and there is more awareness but I don’t think it is out of proportion to the growth of the population and the greater civilisation of the world. I am constantly heartened by the good deeds that are done throughout society and the sense of community that does exist whereby people will look out for elderly or vulnerable neighbours.

To say that nothing is going to get done about it is to ignore the measures that have been taken to improve security, to prevent the misuse of personal data, and to thwart criminal activity. Times change and crimes change. Today we have to worry a lot more about our personal details being taken than about our homes being broken into. We have to be careful not to be taken advantage of. We can help people to avoid the scams and more can be done educate people. To some extent, in the subject of this Conversation, the opportunity to operate a scam is partly due to the complexity of the local tax system with the rating of properties carried out by an ‘invisible’ executive agency of government and the collection of the taxes by a local authority [in my case one of three that provide municipal services to our home and area – how is the citizen to know who does what?]. Where there is confusion there will be exploitation. We do need to do more to inform people and to protect them. I would suggest that any council receiving an application for a council tax refund or a re-banding of their property should check its source in the first instance and seek to uncover any improper practices. It is not illegal to apply for a council tax re-banding on behalf of a property owner and one would expect to pay for such a service. But if the approach is a con and there is no intention to put in an application then that is a criminal offence of obtaining money by false pretences. The best protection is to adopt Ian’s advice given in the first comment on this page.

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Is this now off topic? Perhaps we should have a separate conversation “Is modern society fit for purpose”? Although as this is a consumers’ association, and much of the commenting verges on political, perhaps it would not fit in with Which?’s apolitical position.

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This conversation is to talk about the council tax band ruse scam and other similar scams. Keeping on topic is one of the most important rules of Which? Conversation, which you can read about in our guidelines: https://conversation.which.co.uk/commenting-guidelines/ Please stick to the discussions at hand.

As far as I can see if you believe your council tax band is wrong you apply to the VOA (Valuation Office Agency) for rebanding. The service is free. If you disagree with their judgement you can appeal to a tribunal, again free.

https://www.gov.uk/council-tax-appeals/challenge-your-band

The first thing to do is to decide why you think your valuation (based on 1991 valuation) might be wrong, by checking similar properties in your area. Or you property may have been modified since the valuation. Always the danger your band may go up of course.

Paying someone to do work on your behalf that may benefit you
is fair, if there is genuine work to be done. But responding to cold calling should be avoided – not many people are altruistic and really want to help you without being asked.

I would think that unless the caller has good grounds to expect your tax to be reduced they could be charged with fraud – or extracting money by false pretences. Perhaps a prosecution would not go amiss.

I read about a case recently where a resident applied for a reduction in the council tax banding because it was higher than all the other nearby properties that were the same as his. The outcome was that his banding was not reduced but all the other properties had theirs raised.

Perhaps it is in the verbiage on the back of the council tax bill but councils don’t seem to go out of their way to inform the public about what would qualify for a banding alteration, and being based on 1991 property valuations makes it even more opaque. Councils do, however, check planning consents and building regulations approvals to see whether a property’s value has been enhanced by development and they can apply to the VOA for a revaluation. A lot of people are unaware of the single person council tax discount [25%] although I believe this and other reliefs have to be explained in a leaflet sent with the council tax bill. Perhaps the banding review process is explained there as well – I haven’t noticed.

Interesting. Mind you, I have distinct concerns about a doctoral candidate who finishes assertions with “Period”. :-))))

I suspect you’re right about that. The human insular cortex forms a distinct, but entirely hidden lobe, situated in the depth of the Sylvian fissure. It appears that this small lobe, taking up less than 2% of the total cortical surface area, receives afferents from some sensory thalamic nuclei, is (mostly reciprocally) connected with the amygdala and with many limbic and association cortical areas, and is implicated in an astonishingly large number of widely different functions, ranging from pain perception and speech production to the processing of social emotions. In short, most of this is supposition with little hard evidence to confirm the findings one way or another.

John, I haven’t had any need to go through this process but for most people I believe the free process through VOA should be all they need. Even if the case was a bit more complex than just checking neighbouring properties, if you have concluded you have a good case you are probably competent to do it yourself. I wonder just what the commercial firm will do for its money? And I wonder what happens if your band is increased?

I agree Malcolm. And while I was looking on Google to see what sort of activity there was in this field I noticed hundreds of entries from local councils giving information on how to seek a banding review and how they process refunds if the VOA approves a reduction, so local authorities are taking steps to inform council taxpayers of their rights and the process – but they have to know it is possible in the first place of course.

I suspect the commercial firm I found lurking among the local authorities was possibly more involved in higher value properties where the potential gains are greater, could be dealing with more marginal cases concerning enhancements or detriments where their claimed widespread knowledge from across the UK provided more robust evidence than a homeowner might have access to, and might be of more service to commercial property owners.

I presume if the band is increased following a challenge that would not count as a win so no fee would be payable. A bit like the heir hunters and other claims handlers I expect – they take a good look at what they’re stepping into before taking on a case.

Another reason might be that the older generation tend to be more polite and don’t slam the phone down.

I am always uncomfortable with suggestions that older people have generally lost their marbles and are easily fooled. I think many have their wits about them more than some of the younger age groups and they can usually express themselves more articulately. It is so sad that, for many, age has wearied them and the years have condemned them to deceit and exploitation. I am conscious that I am advancing towards the point where I shall be within sliding distance of the edge of the cusp myself before many more years have passed so I take care with generalisations in case they come back to haunt me.

Many recent studies have shown that people’s intelligence does not decline with age, as was once thought to be the case. However, that clearly depends on what level they started out with and “older folk” as a category – as with all sections of society – represent a cross-section of intellects.