We are carrying out a review of all households in Camden who receive a single person discount on their Council Tax bill.
If you receive a single person discount, you will need to confirm your details so we can check that you are still entitled to it.
If you do not confirm your details, your single person discount will be removed.
What you need to do
You will receive a letter in the post with a form to confirm your details.
The single person discount review is being undertaken by Civica on behalf of the Council. Their Pershore address will be on the form you receive, but rest assured this is a genuine request.
You should return your completed form within 14 days of receiving it. If you do not confirm your details by this deadline, we will send you a reminder.
If we still do not hear from you after this reminder, your single person discount will be removed. We will write to you with a new bill reflecting this.
If you are the only adult over 18 in the property
Tick the relevant box, then sign and date the form.
You should return the form to the address at the bottom of the letter. Alternatively, you can send a scan of it to SPDReview@Camden.gov.uk.
If there is more than one adult in the property
If you live with another adult over 18, you must provide their:
- name
- date of birth
- moving in date
- previous address
If you live with an adult who is exempt
If you live with an adult who has a Council Tax exemption, include them on the form and tell us why they are exempt.
You may need to provide evidence, such as a bank statement to show that you are getting Child Benefit for a person over 18.
If someone uses your address for correspondence
Provide their name and the address at which they live so it can be verified.
You can supply more information if you think it is relevant to assist your claim.
If someone stays at your home regularly
If the person keeps their belongings at your house, it will be classed as their main residence and you will no longer be eligible for the discount.
Some of the questions we may ask are:
- Where does the person stay for the other nights? If they stay at various addresses but keep their belongings at your property, their main residence would be your address
- What address does their doctor or dentist hold for them? If it is your address, it is their main residence
- Does the person work away and stay at your address on their days off? Your address would be their main residence
You should provide as much information as possible. If necessary, you can use a separate sheet.
If you are unsure, please telephone 0300 330 1505 or email spdreview@camden.gov.uk for advice.
Why we are reviewing single person discount
It is estimated that fraud costs councils £2.1bn every year. Every £1 lost is £1 that cannot be spent on supporting the local community.
Council Tax single person discount fraud is only one aspect of this. We are carrying out a review of all households within Camden claiming single person discount on their Council Tax bill.
Your privacy
To check if you should receive a single person discount, Civica will match the Council Tax database with information from third party sources.
Your address will be passed to Experian who run a search to match other data sources, such as the electoral register or credit agreements. Experian then provides Civica with a list of possible adults at the property.
Civica is entitled to hold this data for the levying and collection of a tax. The data is held for as long as required then destroyed.
No database is compiled that could be shared with or accessed by other bodies or sources. For more information, read Experian’s Privacy Notice.
We do not hold any credit information. If you want to see your credit file, you should contact any of the major credit referencing agencies:
- TransUnion (formerly CallCredit)
- Experian
- Equifax