Martin Lewis has warned how at least 100,000 people are missing out on a council tax reduction that could slash their bill.
The MoneySavingExpert explained how you could be entitled to a 25% discount if you live with someone who is classed as having a “severe mental impairment”.
If you are considered as having an SMI and you live alone, your council tax could be reduced by 100%.
According to the charity Turn2Us, SMI means having a “permanent condition which severely affects intellectual or social functioning”.
This can include conditions like - but not limited to - Parkinson’s, Alzheimer's and learning disabilities, the charity said.
Have you lowered your council tax bill? Tell us how: mirror.money.saving@mirror.co.uk
You will need a certificate from your doctor to back up your claim for the council tax reduction.
If you live with one or more other adults, and each is disregarded from paying council tax, you will get a 50% discount.
Live with two or more other adults, where none are disregarded from paying council tax, then no discount is applied.
If you’re eligible for a reduction, the claims can be backdated - meaning you could potentially be owed thousands of pounds back.
In the latest broadcast of the Martin Lewis Money Show Live series on ITV - which looked back at the best success stories over the last ten years - one viewer explained how she got £3,650 back for her dad, who lives alone with dementia.
“It’s something I’ve been campaigning on for a number of years,” said Martin.
“If people have - it’s a horrible term - severe mental impairment (SMI) it basically means you’ve substantially lost social function.
“It could be Alzheimer’s, it could be a stroke, it could be dementia. There are qualifications you have to go through.
“You may be eligible to be discounted for council tax purposes.”
He added: “Do your reading on it. There’s quite a few qualifications but there are probably at least 100,000 people missing out on it.”
Another way to possibly reduce your council tax bill is by challenging your banding.
It is estimated that thousands of homes could be paying too much council tax because they're in too high of a band.
Figures by the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) show around a third of challenges between April 2020 and March 2021 were successful.
But you need to do your research first.
If you challenge your council tax and it turns out you're in too low of a band, you risk being pushed up into a higher band.
This could also result in your neighbour's bills going up as well, if it turns out your whole street is in the wrong band.
