Households with disabled members may be entitled to significant reductions on their council tax bills through a scheme that does not require claimants to be in receipt of any disability benefits. The eligibility criteria centres on the physical characteristics of the property rather than the financial or medical circumstances of its occupants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Known as the Disabled Band Reduction Scheme<\/a>, qualifying households can have their council tax bill reduced to the next lower tax band, or by a flat rate of 17%<\/strong> for those already in the lowest band, Band A<\/strong>. The scheme is designed to support disabled people who face additional housing costs as a result of their disability, such as requiring a larger property than they would otherwise need.<\/p>\n\n\n\n To illustrate the potential savings, a property in the City of London currently rated at Band E <\/strong>carries a council tax bill of \u00a31,625.02 for the year. Under the scheme, that household’s bill would fall to the Band D<\/strong> rate of \u00a31,329.56, a saving of more than \u00a3300 annually.<\/p>\n\n\n\n To qualify, a property must feature either additional indoor space to accommodate wheelchair use, or an extra bathroom, kitchen or room that is genuinely necessary for the disabled resident, for instance, a spare room used for dialysis treatment or to store medical equipment. The home must also serve as the primary residence of at least one disabled person, whether an adult or a child, and that individual need not be the person responsible for paying the council tax<\/a> bill. Applications can be submitted online through the Gov.uk website.<\/p>\n\n\n\n