Money expert Martin Lewis has listed four health conditions which could see your Council Tax bill reduced to £0.
Returning to his ITV The Martin Lewis Money Show Live – also available on catch up service ITVX – Martin urged people to claim a ‘really big’ discount on their Council Tax bill which in some cases can be up to 100 percent off.
Every local council across England and Scotland has a slightly different way of approaching Council Tax discounts but generally those with these conditions will get at least 25 percent off if they live with a partner, ranging up to 100 percent off in other circumstances such as living alone.
To get the discount, although there are no set conditions fixed in stone, Martin gave examples to his viewers of the types of serious conditions which could be classed as an SMI, or Severe Mental Impairment.
Martin said: “A severe mental impairment – horrible term, not mine – is defined as [impact on] intelligence and social functioning which appears to be permanent.
“To qualify it must be medically certified, you need a doctor to sign this.
“It is common with severe dementia, strokes, severe Parkinson’s, brain injuries or other conditions. Those are the type of condition that will get an SMI.”
Those with an SMI condition will also need to claim a qualifying benefit in order to get the money, unless they live in Scotland, in which case it’s automatic.
Martin continued: “To claim it, that person must also be on a qualifying benefit. In Scotland, they must be eligible for a qualifying benefit even if they’re not actually claiming.
“That includes Attendance Allowance – in itself, massively underclaimed – if you need help during the day or the night you need that one too.
“Disability Living Allowance, Personal Independence Payments (PIP), Severe Disablement Allowance and in some cases Universal Credit.
“So, really big, and if you know someone in that situation who can’t claim for themselves. A common one is someone with an SMI is living with their partner, so the 25 percent discount is the most probable one there.”
