Residents struggle to pay up as council tax scheme sees some bills quadruple

BIG INCREASES FOR THOSE RECEIVING PIP ALLOWANCE

- By HANNAH RICHARDSON

LEICESTER residents say they have been left isolated and anxious after seeing huge increases in their council tax bills.

One said she fears any further increases will leave her unable to afford her other bills and basic living expenses.

She added she has “already cut back on everything possible”.

The comments come around six months on from a major rule change that saw some city residents’ council tax bills quadruple compared to last financial year.

This was in part because Leicester City Council is now counting personal independence payments (PIP) as a form of household income when it means-tests the support it gives to council tax payers. The changes to the support scheme were centred on placing residents in bands based on their income, with the amount by which their council tax is reduced being dependent on the broad band they fall into.

Previously, everyone's entitlement to financial support was based on their precise individual income, excluding PIP payments. The authority said at the time it was “designed to create a fairer and simpler scheme” with more support available for the city’s “most vulnerable low income residents”.

The Mercury spoke to a number of residents prior to the changes coming into effect. For some, the first they knew of the new rules was when they received their council tax bills through the post in March.

They said they were “shocked” and “terrified” by the amount they now had to pay.

We spoke to some of them again to see how they were getting on half a year later.

A former teacher who had to give up work due to ill health previously said had her PIP not been taken into account in the calculation, she would have been entitled to an 80 per cent reduction in her council tax bill. With the PIP payment factored in, she was told she would be getting a 20 per cent reduction. This took her bill from around £23 a month over 10 months to £96 - quadrupling it.