Everything you need to understand the system, decide whether to challenge, and—if yes—know exactly what to send to the VOA. Every method here works without us. We make our money only when you decide the £39 challenge saves you the work.
The five steps to challenge your Council Tax band yourself, free, and what each one involves. Or let our free check and £39 challenge do the slow parts.
Find your band on GOV.UK in about a minute, what to note down about your home and your neighbours', and the signs that it's worth a closer look.
Read articleHow to compare your band with similar homes nearby, what counts as similar, and how to read the pattern you find.
Read articleWhat the Valuation Office says it uses to review a band, what it gives little weight, and how to put an evidence bundle together.
Read articleWhether you have a legal right to challenge decides your route, how long a decision takes and whether you can appeal. How to tell which applies to you.
Read articleYour band in England rests on your home's value on 1 April 1991 (2003 in Wales). Where to find sales from around that date, which ones the Valuation Office uses, and what to do if you can't find any.
Read articleA sale from around the valuation date is evidence; a later one only gives an estimate. Which papers count, how to use your own sale or a neighbour's, and why raw prices from different years mislead.
Read articleHow to choose similar homes for a band challenge, matching on type, age, size and location, using GOV.UK's band checker and what you can find out about each home, with a worked table.
Read articleDownload the blank Council Tax challenge form (VO 7455) for England or Wales, and see on the form itself where to tick, what to write and what to leave blank for a band review or a proposal.
Read articleWhat a one-band drop is worth each year, worked out from your council's Band D charge, and why the backdated refund needs its own calculation.
Read articleIf your band is lowered, your council recalculates your account from the date the change takes effect. How far back that goes in England and Wales, who gets the money, and how to ask for it.
Read articleGOV.UK's timings for each stage, from acknowledgement to decision, then your council's recalculation, and what to do if a stage runs over.
Read articleThe situations where a challenge is unlikely to help, or could raise your band, and what to check before you decide.
Read articleYes: a review can raise a band as well as lower it, and it can reach the homes you cite. When the risk is real and how to keep it low.
Read articleWhat a Council Tax band is, the 1991 values behind each band in England, how your bill is worked out from Band D, who sets the bands, and why some are out of line.
Read articleScottish bands use 1991 values with lower thresholds than England's, charges above Band D follow different ratios, and challenges go to your local Assessor rather than the VOA.
Read articleWelsh bands rest on 1 April 2003 values, with nine bands from A to I. What that means for your evidence, the challenge form, appeals and refunds.
Read articleWe pull your band plus every comparable at your postcode and grade — honestly — whether a challenge is likely to win. No payment until you’ve seen your score.
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