Council Tax - Further Information
What Happens To Those Who Don't Pay or Pay
Late?
Those who pay late or don't pay at
all cost us all money. For that reason and in the interest of
all those who do pay on time, the Council will take firm but fair
recovery action. Recovery proceedings will
be taken for the full year's tax (or any balance of the
tax outstanding) if payment of the full amount
of any monthly instalment is not made by
the due date shown on your bill. If you are likely
to have difficulty making payment please contact
our Revenues staff for help or advice. Do not wait to
receive a final notice.
How Is Council Tax
Calculated?
The Council Tax is a combination of
a property element (50%) and a personal element (50%) but the
amount payable will depend upon the valuation band to which the
property has been allocated. Each band will be subject to a
different relative amount of Council Tax with band D set as the
standard. A taxpayer with a property in band A will receive a lower
gross bill, i.e. before any reductions or discounts, than a
taxpayer with a property in band B. The relative amount of Council
Tax appropriate to each valuation band is shown below. Your Council
Tax bill states which band applies to your dwelling.
| Valuation Band |
Range of Values |
Amount Relative of Tax |
| A |
Up to £40,000 |
6/9ths |
| B |
Over £40,000 and up to £52,000 |
7/9ths |
| C |
Over £52,000 and up to £68,000 |
8/9ths
|
| D |
Over £68,000 and up to £88,000 |
1 |
| E |
Over £88,000 and up to £120,000 |
11/9ths |
| F |
Over £120,000 and up to £160,000 |
13/9ths |
| G |
Over £160,000 and up to £320,000 |
15/9ths |
| H |
Over £320,000 |
2 |
How Has My Property Been
Valued
Properties are put into bands not
by the Council but by the Listing Officer at the Valuation Office
Agency, which is part of the Inland Revenue. Each domestic
property has been placed in one of eight valuation bands according
to the price at which the property might reasonably have been sold
on the open market on the 1st April 1991. The band allocated
to your property will not change because house prices fall or rise.
However, the Listing Officer will consider whether the property
should be rebanded when it is sold and improvements have been made.
A copy of the valuation list is available for public inspection at
the Council Offices.
Can I Appeal Against Payment of Council
Tax
You may appeal to the Council if
you consider that you are not liable to pay Council Tax, for
example, because you are not the resident or owner, or because your
property is exempt; or if you disagree with certain aspects of the
calculation of your bill such as a discount not being applied or no
reduction for disabilities being given. If you wish to appeal
on these grounds you must first notify the Council in writing so
that your case can be reconsidered.
The grounds for appeal about
banding are restricted to the following cases:
- where you believe that the banding
should be changed because there has been a material
increase or material reduction (this is
explained below) in the dwelling's value;
- where you start or stop using part
of your dwelling to carry out a business, or the balance between
domestic and business use changes;
- where the Listing Officer has
altered a list without a proposal having been made by a
taxpayer;
- where you become the taxpayer in
respect of a dwelling for the first time.
Your appeal must be made within six
months, but if the same appeal has already been considered and
determined by a Valuation Tribunal, it cannot be made again.
A material increase in
value may result from building, engineering, or other work carried
out on the dwelling. In these cases revaluation does not take
place until after a sale - so the person appealing would usually be
the new owner or resident.
A material reduction in
value may result from the demolition of any part of the dwelling,
any changes in the physical state of the local area or an
adaptation to make the dwelling suitable for use by someone with a
physical disability. In these cases revaluation should take place
as soon as possible.
Appeals and enquiries regarding the
valuation of your property should be made to the Listing
Officer.The address is:
Valuation Office
Agency
Crown House
Birch Street
Wolverhampton
WV1 4DS
Telephone: (01902)
438300
An appeal does not mean that you can
reduce or withhold payment. Should an appeal change the banding for
a property, an adjustment will be made to future payments.
Can my Council Tax be Reduced?
Please contact the Revenues staff for
an application form if you wish to claim any help if you are unsure
if you will qualify. Please check your bill first to ensure that
relief has not already been deducted.
Contacts
| Council Tax
Enquiries |
Revenues &
Benefits |
| Telephone: (01902) 696664 |
South Staffordshire Council |
| Fax: (01902) 696630 |
P.O. Box 1644 |
| Email: taxation@sstaffs.gov.uk |
Wolverhampton |
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WV8 12F |
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