Challenge your Council Tax

You can appeal your Council Tax bill for a number of reasons. You will find more information on the Valuations Tribunal website

Depending on the nature of your appeal, you need to make your appeal to different organisations.

Appeal what band your property is in

The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) allocates Council Tax bands.

You should appeal to the Valuation Office Agency if:

part of your home has been demolished
your property has been converted from one house into flats or flats to a house
there have been physical changes to the area that has affected your home's value
the Valuation Officer has changed your home's band, or a similar property's band, in the last six months
you have become the new Council Tax payer for the property in the last six months

You can challenge your Council Tax band online using the gov.uk website.

If you cannot use the online service, you can call or email the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) to challenge your Council Tax band.

Valuation Office Agency

email: ctinbox@voa.gov.uk
call: 03000 501 501

Lines are open Monday to Friday, 8:30 am to 5:00 pm.

Appealing against your Council Tax banding through the VOA does not cost you anything.

The Valuation Office will consider your appeal and let you know its decision in writing. If you disagree with the decision, you can appeal to a Valuation Tribunal (see below).

You still have to pay Council Tax based on the band shown on your bill until you receive the outcome of your appeal. If you are successful in your appeal, any overpayment will be refunded.

Appeals about your bill

You can make appeals to the Council to amend your Council Tax bill if you:

have received a bill but you think you are not the person who should be paying it
think your home should be exempt from any charge
think your bill should include a discount or reduction for people with disabilities

You must continue to pay Council Tax until you know the outcome of your appeal. If you are successful in your appeal, any overpayments will be refunded.

You can appeal by:

Contacting us online: Council Tax contact us form

Phone: 020 8937 1790

Appeal about the outcome of an appeal

You can appeal to the Valuation Tribunal to amend your Council Tax bill if:

you are the owner of a newly built unoccupied property and disagree with the completion date. This will be the date the property will be banded from and included in the Valuation List. You need to appeal within 28 days of receiving the completion notice.
you disagree with a decision we have made about an appeal you made to us
we have not made a decision on your appeal to us within two months
you disagree with the decision of your appeal to the Valuation Office Agency

Appeals need to be made in writing to:

Valuation Tribunal Service Whitechapel, 2nd Floor 120 Leman Street, London E1 EU

You can also:

Email: appeals@valuationtribunal.gov.uk

Call: 00303 445 8100

Online: Valuation Tribunal Service website

What happens after you appeal?

The Valuation Tribunal, which is independent of both the Valuation Officer and Brent council, will contact you to arrange a hearing and send you a leaflet to explain how the process works.

The hearing is free however if a solicitor presents your case, you will need to pay their charges whether you are successful or not.

You must continue to pay Council Tax until your appeal is decided. If it is successful, we will refund any overpayments.

If you disagree with the Valuation Tribunal's decision, you have four weeks from the decision date to ask them to look at it again, or take the appeal to the High Court on a question of law.