Council tax rules ‘favours killers over victims’

FAMILIES of people who have died are effectively getting a tax hike while criminals get a tax holiday, a North Somerset man has warned the council.

When a person who lives alone dies, their executor has six months’ grace on council tax after grant of probate. After this point, they are liable to pay the full rate of council tax on the deceased person’s property. Addressing a full meeting of North Somerset Council on January 9 as a public speaker to raise the issue, Gareth Hiscock asked councillors: “Why six months? Why at 100%? If people live alone, they get a reduction. Zero people should therefore be a reduction. What about ability to pay? A deceased person has no income. Council tax goes up upon death.”

Mr Hiscock added: “If a person murders someone and they go to prison, they pay zero council tax. If the person they murdered, their property is then paying 100% council tax so they are paying more. It seems perverse.”

He said: “It’s something that’s never really been looked at so all I’m asking is can it be reviewed.”

A spokesperson for North Somerset Council said: “Our sympathies are with the gentleman who spoke at council following his loss. Homes that become empty when the householder passes away are exempt from council tax payments for up to six months after probate has been granted. However, the exemption ends before then if the property is either sold or passed to a beneficiary. The exemption for someone in prison – as long as they’re not being detained for nonpayment of council tax – lasts for the whole of their sentence. We don’t have the power at a local level to change this as we’re governed by national legislation.”