Council tax increases by almost £100 with London worst-hit in list of areas

Council tax bills increased 5.1 percent in the past year with one area seeing their bills go up by almost 14 percent.

Analysis from RIFT found average bills for Band D properties went up from £1,966 last year to £2,065 this year. London saw the biggest increase, as bills went up 6.2 percent to £1,801 a year.

However, the capital continues to have the lowest average council tax bill of all regions, while bills are highest in the North East, at £2,196 a year. Bills have increased by over £100 in London, the South West and the North East.

The East of England had the smallest tax increase as rates went up by 4.6 percent, increasing from £1,987 a year to £2,079 a year.

Bradley Post, managing director of RIFT, said: “Councils are having a tough time of it at the moment with many on the brink of bankruptcy. Increasing council tax is one way in which they can try and keep their heads above water, but during a cost of living crisis it’s a bitter pill to swallow for residents.

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‌”There’s also such a vast discrepancy between one area of England and the next. A true postcode lottery.”

This is how much council tax increases in each region and by what percentage:

  • London – £104.93 – 6.2 percent
  • South West – £104.33 – 5.1 percent
  • North East – £101.27 – 4.8 percent
  • Yorkshire & Humber – £94.17 – 4.8 percent
  • South East – £98.00 – 4.8 percent
  • North West – £97.16 – 4.7 percent
  • East Midlands – £97.68 – 4.7 percent
  • West Midlands region – £91.74 – 4.6 percent
  • East of England – £92.06 – 4.6 percent.

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After Croydon, Thurrock had the second highest increase of any area, with bills increasing 9.44 percent to £1,899 a year.

Council tax bills in Slough went up 9.3 percent, with bills increasing £172.44 to £2,027 a year.

The authority with the lowest increase was Central Bedfordshire with bills increasing by just 1.29 percent, an increase of £27.67 a year.

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The other two areas that had an increase of less than three percent were North Lincolnshire and Telford and Wrekin, where bills increased by 2.44 percent and 2.6 percent respectively.

Mr Post said: “Anyone who is worried about being able to afford rising taxes at a time like this might want to consider checking whether or not they’re eligible for a tax refund.

“It’s not just the self-employed who could be owed money by HMRC, and you can back-collect for up to four years, so it’s well worth checking out. You could be entitled to hundreds of pounds.”

For the latest personal finance news, follow us on Twitter at @ExpressMoney_.

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