The Voice of Spalding and South Holland
The council has enlisted the services of a data investigation company to help identify tax cheats.
South Holland District Council (SHDC) is urging more than 10,000 households to tell the council if they are claiming council tax discounts they are not entitled to.
A statement from South Holland District Council said the Single Person Discount (SPD) gives a 25 per cent council tax discount to more than 11,600 households where there is only one adult resident at the property.
In the last financial year, this totalled more than £3.4m.
The council is trying to make savings on that and will outsource the work to data firm Datatank Limited.
On its website, the company “guarantees to reduce the number of fraudulent claims, and maximises Council
Tax revenues whilst minimising the cost of conducting an SPD Review”.
A spokesman for SHDC said Datatank has been commissioned by all Lincolnshire authorities to carry out their reviews.
The spokesman explained: “All addresses that are in receipt of Single Person Discount are to be cross-checked against credit bureau data.”
They go on to explain residents’ personal information is not accessed during this check. “It is only looking at the address where more than one adult name is linked, which might potentially mean more than one adult resident.
“In this situation, Datatank will write to the Council Tax payer to ask them to confirm their discount entitlement.”
Datatank’s website said it handles all claimant correspondence, updates councils’ Revenues systems and issues Council Tax bills on behalf of the authority.
To date, the company has completed 600 reviews and cancelled approximately 5.3 per cent of claims.
In a statement, the council suggests forgetfulness is a big factor in incorrect claims.
Coun Peter Coupland, Portfolio Holder for Finance said: “We believe most council tax discounts are claimed honestly and legitimately but we know there are times where a household’s circumstances change and people forget to tell us their eligibility to a discount should end.
“However, it is a statutory requirement for council tax payers to tell us within 21 days if they think they should no longer qualify for a discount.
“If you receive a discount you think you should not receive, this is your final chance to tell us, before we contact you,” he said.
Coun Coupland said any records will be amended back to the date of change. “It could mean some households will find they have a considerable amount of council tax arrears to pay,” he said.
To discuss your tax situation, call 01775 761161 and select option 4, or email counciltax@sholland.gov.uk
