Martin Lewis says you could be owed thousands in council tax refunds - how to check

Britons have been advised to verify whether they are "overpaying" their council tax, as many properties could be entitled to thousands of pounds in rebates. Financial expert Martin Lewis suspects hundreds of thousands of households across England and Scotland are probably assigned to incorrect council tax bands.

This predicament may have continued for decades, he warned, with compensation payouts worth thousands of pounds being "commonplace".

Council tax constitutes a charge levied by your local council to finance particular services such as waste collection, highway upkeep and libraries.

A proportion also funds local police and fire and rescue services.

Therefore, the amount you pay varies depending on where you live in the country.

However, your bill will also change according to your property style, as different dwelling types are assigned to various bands.

This is what demands your attention, Martin explained.

In advice posted on his Money Saving Expert website, he warned that properties in England and Scotland may be placed in wrong bands, leading to incorrect council tax payments. He declared: "Hundreds of thousands of homes across England and Scotland are thought to be in the wrong council tax band.

"This means it's important to check your property's in the right band - something our tried-and-tested system can help you do. Some homeowners and renters have unknowingly been overpaying Council Tax for many years, even decades, because their bands are too high, so payouts worth £1,000s are commonplace."

He disclosed that "many" properties have remained in incorrect council tax bands since 1991.

A new council tax system was introduced that year, but due to lack of resources, a large number of properties were assessed with just a cursory look by officials who were literally driving past.

Luckily for residents in Wales, the Government has reassessed all properties, ensuring people there are now paying the correct amount. However, this has not happened in England and Scotland.

"So the flawed old valuation still dictates much of the kingdom's banding, which is why you could be paying more than your neighbour even though you live in exactly the same size property," Martin stated.

There are several ways to check if you are paying the wrong amount for your council tax.

You can:

• Discover if your band is higher than neighbours in comparable or identical properties - you can either ask them or search on the gov.uk website
• Calculate what your property was worth in 1991 - the simplest way to do this is to search on websites such as Nethouseprices, Zoopla and Rightmove

If you suspect your home is in the wrong band you should then challenge it, Martin said.

He advised: "If you're in England, the Gov.uk website helps explain how to go about challenging your council tax band. You can either contact the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) directly, at which point you'll be told how your band was decided, and have the opportunity to explain why you believe it is wrong and how it should be altered.

"Alternatively, you can check your band by entering your postcode and selecting your address from a list. Then you can click on the link asking if you think your council tax banding is wrong and you'll be given the option to fill out a checklist which suggests reasons you could challenge."

In Scotland, council tax bands are handled by the Scottish Assessors' Association (SAA). Simply enter your postcode in the Council Tax Bands search facility on the SAA homepage.

Martin went on: "Select your property from the list. If you want to challenge the banding, click on 'Make a proposal'. You can then fill in an online form which will be sent to your local assessor, who will contact you."

For more information visit the MSE website here.