hi there,

i am self employed and have done really bad over the last two years. apparently i would have been elegible for not paying council tax or certainly severely reduced. i never claimed as i was hoping my business would pick up but unfortunately things have only got worse. now i want to try and claim the CT benefit but i have a little problem.

my partner has been living with me for the last two years but has never been registered on the voters roll. i want to claim the benefit but even though we were eligible for CT benefit, i am worried if i now put her on the voters roll they will try and claim back council tax . she is already part of my claim for working tax credit and family tax credit as we have had two kids together within a short space of time. she has lived in this country for about 6 years but is originally from poland.

what i want to know what is the best way to get this benefit without getting into trouble. as iv said i should have been getting this benefit a few years ago but i never dreamed that things would get as hard as they are now. i paying my creditors £1 a month due to my poor financial situation and have spoken to cccs about 3 months ago so it wont be hard to prove how poor i am. some people have advised me to say she has just come back from poland but i am worried about saying this in case of any furhter implications. she was last on a voters role just over two years ago so how do i explain the gap without getting into trouble or more debt.

appreciate any help on this matter as they have now obtained court order to chase me.

thx in advance,

marky313

Council Tax is based on the property not the number of people living there. So unless you fraudulently claimed the single person discount you will have no problems.

Hi Aviva,

i have lived at my current address for 10 years and always claimed single persons allowance. This was until two years ago when my partner got pregnant and moved in. shortly after we had twins born 14 weeks early just after id setup my own business and had a nightmare. one son died and the other had a lengthy stay in hospital. then had a logistical nightmare trying to sort out all child and family related benefits- even had to prove my other son had died to the benefite office- very sensitive!! all this time i never changed the council tax roll as it was the least of my worries-i am still fending off phone calls and letters re my debt while struggling to live day-to-day. even before my partner moved in i was eligible for CT reduction due to low income but as i said i never got round to changing it due to fear of more reprisals against me ( inland revenue want about £2000 grand working tax back due to confusion over working tax forms- but thats another story!!).

in summary i have paid them far more than i should have been, based on my income, but now i am in severe debt problems and have no choice but to try and address the problem. i would like to tell the council the exact truth but i feel that they will not be refunding the extra CT i paid but rather pursuing me for the extra 25%. my biggest fault was not telling them strightaway but ill freely admit i was a mess for a long time afterwards and only in the last 4 months, have i been able to think more clearly and try and get on top of my problems. not trying to defraud anyone just want whats fair as in the best way possible.

thx again, mark

TO CLARIFY...

not sure it was clear in the previous msg but i was genuinely the only person living here the whole time until my pregnant partner moved in.

cheers, mark

The question is for the last 2 years while your partner has been living with you did you claim and receive the 25% single person discount? It seems from your comment that the Council may pursue you for the extra 25% that yes you did. This will be seen as fraud if they find out.

If you make an application for CT benefit now this may trigger an investigation into how long your partner has been at the property by the Council Tax dept. They would want to know when she moved in and where she lived before and will require proof. I know that when Councils investigate benefit fraud they can look into bank accounts, etc. I don't know whether Council Tax have the same powers to investigate fraudulent discount claims but it wouldn't surprise me if they did.

The rules for getting CT benefit or Housing Benefit backdated are very strict on the amount of time you have to make the application, the length of time that it can be backdated for and the reason for not applying. Applications that state that the person did not know they could claim or chose to see how things went financially are usually turned down.

Mostly it will depend on how well the Council depts work together. If the Council Tax and Benefits teams work well together and share info then it is likely there will be questions asked.

I know that when Councils investigate benefit fraud they can look into bank accounts, etc. I don't know whether Council Tax have the same powers to investigate fraudulent discount claims but it wouldn't surprise me if they did.

We dont have the facilities in the same way that benefit fraud sections do to check details.

Thanks for the clarification on that.