Q I have been putting my Disability Living Allowance into a separate bank account. Now the council says that because I did not tell them about this, I have been given too much Council Tax Rebate and it wants some money back. How can this be? I thought Disability Living Allowance was ignored as income for Council Tax Benefit.
A So it is, but if you save it up it will be treated the same as any other savings. Once savings go over £3,000, income- related benefits are reduced.
Q Can my parents get Income Support or any other benefits? They have a rebate which reduces their Council Tax. They are in their 70s and my father has to have constant care from my mother because of a disability.
A As they have to pay part of their Council Tax, their income cannot be low enough for them to get Income Support. If your father is deemed to need a certain amount of personal care, he could get Attendance Allowance. this would be £55.33 or £35.80 a week and would not reduce other benefits.
Q My husband has a pension of £115.08 a week and works pensions of £102.69 a month. My pension is £42.42 a week. Could we get a reduction in our Council Tax?
A Yes. About £1.30 a week. If either of you is 75 or over you should be able to qualify for more.
Q We get Income Support but are still having to pay Council Tax of £9 a month because our son lives with us. Why should this be when he has no job and gets no benefit?
A If he were getting Income Support or income-based Jobseeker's Allowance, the council would not assume any contribution from him. Otherwise, non-working people are treated as paying £2.30 a week regardless of their income.
Q My Income Support is about to stop because my Retirement Pension will come into payment, giving us a pension income of £144 a week. My Council Tax bill was £302.43 for the year, taking account what my son was expected to pay. What Council Tax must I pay now?
A The equivalent of an extra £2.56 more than you have been paying
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