UK households can potentially get hundreds, if not thousands, of pounds in repayments in the approach of Christmas, giving them the chance to recoup a sizeable sum of money.
UK Households Could Benefit Five Refunds Worth £6,243 Before Christmas
By Chourouk Derkaoui
Published on 4 November 2024 17:41
Five refunds totalling hundreds of pounds have been made available to UK households; they'll receive the money before Christmas. The personal finance experts are right that they could use their refunds to earn money for Christmas.
Unlocking Hidden Repayments for UK Households This Christmas
A simple phone call or filling out a form can cause a lot of this. As Christmas approaches, everyone wants their money back because companies and other organizations haven't always treated people properly.
However, households might be shocked to hear that they most likely qualify for a variety of refunds they were unaware of. They can make their money go further by making a few savings, but they should keep in mind that companies are quite busy these days.
Students loans: £3300
According to MoneySavingExpert's (MSE) Freedom of Information (FOI) request, more than one million graduates overpaid their student loans in the most recent fiscal year alone.
In recent years, Student Loans Company has introduced a series of programs to increase student repayment and reduce overpayments. These include an online repayment facility, automatic repayments, and proactive outreach to those likely to have overpaid.
"Thank you so much. I knew something wasn’t right when I lodged my tax returns, and reading Martin’s article was the catalyst for a sustained attempt to work out what had happened. I received £3,773 back,” one Money Saving Expert reader wrote.
A second said: “Thanks to watching Martin Lewis's program last night, I contacted the SLC and have got a refund of £706 as I had started paying straightaway. Great just before Christmas.”
Another typed: “Just wanted to say a massive thank you as I read your article on overpaying on student loan repayments and realized there was a chance I had overpaid. Turns out I had, and I've since received a refund of £900! I've been doing house renovations this year, so this money has been incredibly handy in going towards them."
Council tax: £2171
In England and Scotland, “hundreds of thousands” of households could be classified in the wrong council tax band, according to Martin Lewis. Because of this misclassification and the way council tax bands are calculated, people can end up paying more than they should.
If your home has been classified incorrectly, your local council may be able to give you a substantial refund. Some have received nearly £6,000 in total.
After successfully reducing their council tax, thrifty social media users who followed Mr. Martin's advice are now encouraging others to do the same.
Shell Clarke, writing on X, said: "After Martin talking about this in a show a couple of years ago, I looked into what my neighbors bands were and if their properties were similar to mine, which they were.
"My husband said I was wasting my time. I challenged the local authority and won, receiving a refund of £6649". While Bev North said, "Hi Martin. Did the council tax check you suggested a while ago? Claimed two and a half thousand pounds back. Many thanks!"
Karen Halliwell added: "Just checked my council tax band and filled out the challenge form. It took me a couple of minutes as I found I was in a higher band than my neighbors. Thank you so much for the information."
Marriage allowance: £252
Through the Marriage Allowance, a low-income spouse can transfer up to £1,260 of their personal allowance to a spouse, civil partner, or husband. As a result, the higher-income earner's tax liability for the tax year is reduced by up to £252. To qualify, the salary of the lower earner must be less than the personal allowance, which is usually £12,570.
Pension tax refunds
Based on the latest information provided by HMRC, a total of £44.3 million was repaid between July 1 and September 30.
Dawn Register, head of tax dispute resolution at accounting firm BDO, said: “You might be due a tax refund if you have made charitable donations or if you have made certain tax-efficient investments (like the Enterprise Investment Scheme, EIS, or Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme, SEIS). Alternatively, you might have allowable expenses to claim against your employment income, you may not have worked for the whole of the tax year, or HMRC may have used an estimate in your tax code for the year that proved to be excessive.”
Gov.uk's online service allows householders to apply for a tax refund if they believe they have paid too much tax and have not received a P800 form or automatic refund.
Although, they will have to answer a series of questions about why they think they have paid too much tax. Each question includes information about their chances of receiving a refund; for instance, if they didn't receive a P800 form, they are informed that “you’ve probably paid the right amount of tax” and how to apply for one.
Delayed travel: £520
Households should be entitled to a refund for flights departing from the UK, departing from the EU, Iceland, Norway, or Switzerland, arriving in the UK on a UK or EU airline, or arriving in the EU on a UK airline.
A delay of more than two hours is required for flights under 1,500 kilometers, three hours for flights up to 3,500 kilometers, and four hours for flights over 3,500 kilometers. However, depending on the length of the journey and the extent of the delay, refunds vary between £220 and £520.