SOUTH SOMERSET NEWS: Thousands to be checked on Council Tax

NEARLY 25,000 Council Tax payers in South Somerset who receive a 25 per cent reduction on their bill as single occupancy residents will soon be checked to make sure that the reductions are correct.

The checks form part of the council’s measures to protect the public purse by preventing and detecting fraud. It is estimated that nationally around £92 million a year is lost to those claiming the single person discount on false pretences.

Capita Local Government has been appointed to carry out a comprehensive review in South Somerset. They will work with Equifax, the credit reference agency using up-to-the-minute, data-matching technology to identify where people are claiming discounts that they are not entitled to.

The review which involves around 24,000 taxpayers, who currently claim the single person discount, follows a similar project carried out in 2010-11 which identified around £285,000 worth of single person discounts which was then removed.

Single person discount is an entitlement that the council is keen to ensure taxpayers receive only where they are genuinely entitled as taxpayers who claim the discount improperly place an extra burden on other residents. In addition to removing the discount and recovering the underpayment of Council Tax, the council can levy fines and take other legal action if a change in circumstances has not been reported promptly.

The council’s finance spokesman, Cllr Tim Carroll, said: “It is imperative that the council ensures public money is not being lost through some residents’ claiming a discount or exemption to which they are not entitled.

“This is even more critical during this time when funding for public services is under pressure due to the Government’s austerity measures which have resulted in a significant cut in the Revenue Support Grant that this Council receives from Central Government.”

Council Tax helps to pay for a range of vital local services provided by the district and county councils, the Police and the Fire Services.

Any taxpayers currently receiving a discount which they feel may not be correct are urged to contact South Somerset District Council on 01935-462462 before the full review begins in October.

For more information visit www.southsomerset.gov.uk/counciltax.

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