council tax

[iggymiggy]

do you get 2 free months with council tax and water rates if you pay by direct debit if so which 2 months are free

[Buenchico]

Some councils divide the annual payment into 10 monthly instalments, with February and March as the 'free' months.

Other councils divide the total bill by 12, making the monthly payments less but with no 'free' months.

The website of the appropriate council (or your council tax bill) should explain which system your council uses.

Chris

[Hymie]

No way – such a reduction would represent 17%, no one is going to give you that kind of discount for paying up front.

Me thinks Buenchico must work for the PR department of his local council.

The thieving bastards running my local council run the scheme Buenchico mentions – whereby the annual council tax is divide by 10, paid April to January inclusive. This improves the tax collection, since it should all be collected for the year by January – with 2 months+ remaining.

Hopefully my local council will not extend the scheme, whereby I pay the full amount in April and have 11 months ‘free’.

[Buenchico]

PS: I've just noticed that your post refers to 'water rates', as well as to Council Tax.

Unlike Council Tax, bills for water usage aren't tied to the financial year. They're calculated upon a 3-monthly or 6-monthly basis, depending upon the supplier. Payments by direct debit are simply based upon the average monthly water consumption for a household, so there are no 'free months'.

Chris

[Kathyan]

We pay our council tax by direct debit and the payments are made for 10 months. So we don't pay anything in February and March. Same with our water rates. My daughter pays her water rates over 8 months so gets 4 months 'free'.

[bednobs]

thanks for this post - it has just reminded me i will be 150 quid "richer" for the next two mnths :)

[BRIGHT SPARK]

Brilliant ...i've just realised i'll be £450 richer..i'll put it towards my leccy bill!!

[squarebear]

Are people believing they will get a discount by paying direct debit? No,no,no.

The amount is divided into 10 parts instead of 12, you don't get 2 free months.

Imagine your council tax bill is £1200. You would pay 10 lots of £120 instead of 12 lots of £100. The advantage is that in Febrauary and March, you don't have to pay anything, so you get a bit more money in your back pocket.

[Whoever]

Paying over 10 months instead of 12, as people have pointed out, doesn't mean you pay less - just that you pay more over 10 months and then have two months payment free. As Local Authorities also generally work out their budgets for Tax Years, it also means that they can get all their income in two months before the end of the tax year, and know whether they have any surplus which can be spent on 'special projects' and used up before the end of the tax year.

[lankeela]

Its not a discount but it sure helps come February and March when you are still paying for Christmas.