Council Tax

S t i c k - I t - 2 Council Tax Guide The Full Monty Pack Understand the Bill Check Every Reduction Challenge and Appeal Handle Recovery Use the Full Toolkit October 2026 / (c) 2026 ParadigModern Group Guide ENGLAND | CONTENT REVIEW DRAFT V0.4

Council Tax Guide | The Full Monty Pack Back to contents Start here If a council tax letter has frightened you, take a moment and breathe. Now check its title, issue date and every payment, response or hearing date. Is it a bill, reminder, final notice, summons or enforcement notice? Photograph or copy it. If action is due today, overdue or a visit is close, contact the council recovery team and free debt advice now. Reading this guide must not delay that action. Use Find your situation next. This guide concerns Council Tax in England. It helps you identify the stage, check the bill, seek help with payment and use the right challenge or complaint route. You can start with one task and return for the detail. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have different systems. A disputed bill, unaffordable payment and service complaint can need separate action at the same time. Keep paying the current bill while challenging it unless a revised bill, agreed arrangement or legal protection changes what is due. If you cannot afford it, tell the council promptly and seek free debt advice. A challenge, complaint or request for time does not itself stop recovery, a hearing or an appeal deadline. [S01] How it actually works Identify the notice and deadline. Deal with any urgent recovery step. Then check whether the bill is wrong, unaffordable, or both. A tax appeal and a service complaint have different jobs. The complete scoped explanation, worked situations and all nineteen tools. England edition | Checked 31 October 2026 | Content review draft V0.4 Page 2 of 58

Council Tax Guide | The Full Monty Pack Back to contents Find your situation Choose the row closest to the paper in front of you. Follow the actual notice if its deadline comes first. What arrived First action A bill or revised bill Check person, period, reductions and payments; preserve the instalment dates. Go to section 2. A reminder or final notice Check the catch-up sum and deadline; contact recovery now if payment is impossible. Go to section 12. A summons or liability order Confirm court arrangements and order details; obtain debt advice without delay. Go to section 12. A notice of enforcement or agent at the door Use the enforcement section immediately; ask an adviser about the notice and any provider extension. Go to section 12. A refused discount or exemption Write a reasoned disagreement to the council and log the separate tribunal clock. Go to section 8. A Council Tax Reduction refusal or calculation Check the scheme year and exact disputed item; challenge without waiting for missing records. Go to section 5. The property band looks wrong Check formal proposal eligibility with the Valuation Office. Go to section 10. Lost records, poor handling or inaccessible letters Use the council complaint route while preserving any tax appeal date. Go to section 11. Council Tax Reduction (CTR); Valuation Tribunal for England (VTE); Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO). These names recur in the route selector. You do not need to learn them before acting on an urgent notice. Page 3 of 58

Council Tax Guide | The Full Monty Pack Back to contents Contents 6 Before you choose a route 7 Section 12 Arrears, summonses and enforcement 12 Section 2 Read the account and identify who is liable 14 Section 3 Check discounts, disregards and exemptions 16 Section 4 Disability: severe mental impairment and band reduction 18 Section 5 Low income, hardship and an affordable payment plan 20 Section 6 Choose the correct route 23 Section 7 Build a small, usable evidence record 25 Section 8 Write useful representations to the council 27 Section 9 Prepare an appeal to the Valuation Tribunal 29 Section 10 Check whether the property's band is wrong 31 Section 11 Use the complaints process for service failures 33 Section 13 Work through common situations 35 Section 14 Use the tools and check the outcome 37 Section 15 Reference, free help and keeping the guide current 39 Letters and supporting tools 40 T01 Notice and deadline log 40 T02 Written challenge to a council liability, discount or exemption decision 40 T03 Challenge to a Council Tax Reduction calculation or refusal 41 T04 Clarification, calculation and evidence request 41 T05 Chaser for an unanswered challenge or request Page 4 of 58