Millions of Britons are missing out on council tax support worth £1,513 each – find out how to claim
Each council has discretions as to how much council tax support to offer each resident
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More than two million families have been warned they could be missing out on council tax support worth more than £1,500 a year.
Almost 2.3 million people are failing to claim a huge £3.4billion in council tax support, research suggests.
This amounts to support worth an average of £1,513 a year, according to the analysis of official data by the organisation Policy in Practice.
Council tax support is available for those on a low income, to subsidise their bill.
Those eligible could get a discount of anything up to 100 per cent through the support.
Pensioners are part of the group who are missing out on this extra support. Figures show there is almost £1million unclaimed in pension-age council tax support.
Pensioners who receive the guaranteed part of Pension Credit could get their council tax paid in full
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The rest of the amount is for working age Britons. The average claim for working-age council tax support is £1,464, while the support for pensioners is worth an average of £1,670.
Pensioners who receive the guaranteed part of Pension Credit could get their council tax paid in full.
Many people miss out on these savings as they are unaware it exists or that they could qualify.
Each local council is responsible for giving out council tax support to their residents so how much one gets will depend on where they live, their income, dependent and other benefits.
The council tax discount one will likely get depends on what band they are in.
Council tax bands range from A to H, with A homes paying the least and H the most.
Scotland and Wales also have national schemes.
Overall, figures show £23billion worth of means-tested benefits and social tariffs could go unclaimed this financial year.
This amounts to £2,700 on average for homes missing out.
Policy in Practice founder Deven Ghelani said: “Behind these huge figures lie individual families struggling to cope.
“This support exists for a reason and if we plug this £23billion gap and lift people out of poverty it will give them healthier lives, better educational attainment and longer life expectancy – and the costs to the NHS and social care would fall.”
How to claim council tax support
Britons can use the Government's "Apply for Council Tax Reduction" tool on its website to find out if they’re eligible.
To apply, individuals will need to enter their postcode which will take them to their council's website for more specific information.
Michael Clarke, head of information at the charity Turn2Us, says: “The process is more difficult because there is not one single path to claim this support.
“Each local authority has a different route to get to it.”
If a person thinks they're in the wrong council tax band, and paying too much, they can challenge it on the Government's website.
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Councils can increase bills by more than five per cent without a referendum if they have government permission.
Some councils have increased council tax by up to 10 per cent, pushing up a family's monthly bills.
Woking Borough Council, for example, has agreed an increase of 10 per cent. Birmingham City Council has approved an even bigger increase of 21 per cent over the next two years, as it tries to make savings of £300million.
With council tax bills on the rise, households are urged to claim all the benefits they are entitled to as this could make all the difference.
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