Everything you need to know about council tax rebates in Hertfordshire
The government announced the rebate earlier this year in response to a hike in energy prices.
Last updated 14th Apr 2022
Councils in Hertfordshire have started to pay out £150 to thousands of households in an effort to help with the rising cost of living. The government announced the council tax rebate earlier this year in response to a hike in energy prices, which will see the majority of households given a one-off payment.
The council tax rebate will be given out to most eligible households this month from the district council as a cash payment. To qualify for the rebate your property must be in council tax band A to D and your sole or main residence.
The £150 does not need to be paid back, and is separate from a scheme which will see energy bills cut by £200 in October before bills will include a £40-a-year levy from the following April.
While this is a government scheme as the money is being paid through local authorities, each council is using its own systems to ensure payments are made, and there are slight changes to the timeline in each area.
Government guidance is that the payment is made after a household makes its first direct debit to ensure the bank account is correct.
We’ve rounded up the latest advice from all 10 district councils in Hertfordshire about when residents should expect the payment.
Broxbourne
In response to a question on social media, Broxbourne Borough Council said it was unable to provide an exact date for the rebate to be paid but confirmed payments will arrive this month.
Dacorum
In Dacorum, payments are set to start from April 29 for those who pay their council tax by Direct Debit.
On its website, the borough council said around 45,000 payments will be made as part of the scheme and new processes were being set up to facilitate the payments.
For those with a direct debit installment date of April 1 or April 10, the payment will be received on April 29.
For those who have a council tax direct debit date of April 21, the payment will be received on May 6, with those paying their first council tax instalment on May 1 receiving payment on May 13.
For those who don’t pay by direct debit, or where the rebate cannot be paid into the bank account, the council will write directly by May 13.
East Hertfordshire
East Herts Council has confirmed payments will be made during April, and has updated its website in recent days.
On its website, the council said: “If you were already signed up to pay your council tax by direct debit, we will be making payments during April. In line with government guidance, this will be after we have collected your April council tax payment to ensure bank details are valid.
“For those who recently signed up to direct debit, we will be making payments to you after collecting your first payment, in line with government guidance.
“If you are not signed-up to pay by direct debit, we will be launching an application process. This will be on our website and promoted widely.”
Hertsmere
Hertsmere Borough Council is aiming to pay the rebate before May 4 to those who made a council tax payment by direct debit in April.
Its website said: “If you pay your council tax by direct debit in April, we will pay you the £150 energy rebate by 4 May. If you pay your first instalment of the current financial year by direct debit in May, we will pay you the rebate by the end of May.
“If you do not pay your council tax by direct debit, we will need your bank details and we will need to verify that the details are correct before awarding the rebate.
“This means you will need to complete an online form and provide us with evidence of your bank details. We will carry out some pre-payment checks before awarding this.”
The form for those who do not pay council tax by direct debit is not available yet, but it is hoped payments will be made in early May.
North Hertfordshire
In North Hertfordshire the £150 will be paid into your account after the April instalment of council tax has been debited from your account.
No set date has been set out by the council, but it has said it would take a few days to appear and residents should only contact the council if the payment is not showing 10 working days after your direct debit date.
St Albans
It’s estimated that 30,000 households in St Albans will be eligible for the payment, which will be paid directly to residents’ bank accounts.
The council has said for those who pay by direct debit, the payment should be made by late April. Further details for those who do not pay by direct debit will be confirmed at a later date.
Stevenage
Stevenage Borough Council will be paying the rebate after collecting the first council tax payment of the year.
An update on its borough council’s website said: “We are currently working on the energy rebates of £150 and have to make some changes to our systems involving new software to be able to do this.
“We will be making payments during April for those eligible residents and in-line with Government advice once we have collected customers’ April council tax payment by direct debit to ensure the bank details remain valid.
“For new customers who have recently signed up to pay by direct debit and are eligible, we will be looking to make payment to you in-line with the Government advice after we have collected your first payment by direct debit.”
The borough council has also said more details on support for those in bands E to H will appear on its website after May 11.
Three Rivers and Watford
Three Rivers District Council and Watford Borough Council share services when it comes to tax collection, and the councils have confirmed money will be automatically paid into residents’ bank accounts if they pay by direct debit, but not when payments will be made.
The district councils have said more information will appear on its websites when available. https://www.threerivers.gov.uk/egcl-page/energy-rebate-scheme-2022
Welwyn Hatfield
Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council has started processing payments from April 11, and these will automatically be issued to eligible households.
For households which do not pay council tax through direct debit, the online application process has now opened through https://www.grantapproval.co.uk/.