Council tax crackdown

A hi-tech data matching system is being used by West Lindsey District Council authenticate claims, and remove those which are made in error - or fraudulently.

Residents need to check they are still entitled to claim the 25 per cent single person’s discount in their council tax bill.

A whopping £3 million is paid out each year to more than 12,000 people across the district who claim they live alone in a property, and receive a council tax discount of at least £250.

WLDC will be investigating whether all of these people genuinely live alone, with help from the County Council, CapacityGRID and Equiniti Data Services.

“Sometimes it is easy to forget to update your details due to a change in circumstances but we are giving people an opportunity to do so before the review gets underway next month,” said Coun Tom Regis, chairman of policy and resources.

“People who are genuinely claiming the discounts have nothing to worry about, but anyone found to be deliberately misleading us could face a fine of up to £70 in addition to increased payments and face legal action.”

Everyone who claims the discount will get a letter or phone call during the review period, September and October.

Failure to respond to information requests will result in the discount being cancelled from next April.