The Council Tax rebate is very unfair as the value of a property bears no relation to the household income, and property values vary so much from the south to the north.
We live in a rented 2 bedroom bungalow in a nice area, but in a Band E, so we don't qualify for the Council Tax rebate. Someone in the north of England could have a much higher income and disposable income, than we do and may have a bigger house, but because of the difference in property prices, may live in a Band D property and qualify for the Council Tax rebate.
The only saving grace for us is that we fixed our energy price for 2 years last June, so have not yet felt the impact of the recent price increases. We currently pay £159 per month for Gas& Electricity and dread the increase from June 2023.
If it’s any consolation I live in a band E property in the North of England and it gets a good bit colder up here at times. The banding was done in 1991 and all though there was still the North South divide it wasn’t nearly as much then in terms of house prices as it is now.
A local income tax would be a fairer way of funding Councils. It is crazy that Council Tax bandings are still working on the equivalent value from 1991.
When we get the £400 later in the year, I will leave it in the fuel account and continue to pay the same as we do now, so that there will be a credit balance when we do finish the fixed price period in June 2023.
It was brought in to replace a very unpopular tax (remember that). I think to change how it is collected could cost a lot and possibly be more unpopular. But revaluing property banding based on square footage would seem to make sense to me. Would have to be done in a way that was proportionate to the money being currently generated.
Rather than opting for a windfall tax (or whatever you want to call it) why not tell the energy companies to drop the standing charge or reduce the unit cost by a set percentage. To me that would be the fairest solution. They should also limit the increase to a set percentage when the next cost of living increase is due. I don't know whether that is feasible or not but to me it seems a simple solution.
Rather than opting for a windfall tax (or whatever you want to call it) why not tell the energy companies to drop the standing charge or reduce the unit cost by a set percentage. To me that would be the fairest solution. They should also limit the increase to a set percentage when the next cost of living increase is due. I don't know whether that is feasible or not but to me it seems a simple solution.
Won’t this largely be applied to fuel companies like shell and bp and not those providing energy to homes?
Rather than opting for a windfall tax (or whatever you want to call it) why not tell the energy companies to drop the standing charge or reduce the unit cost by a set percentage. To me that would be the fairest solution. They should also limit the increase to a set percentage when the next cost of living increase is due. I don't know whether that is feasible or not but to me it seems a simple solution.
Won’t this largely be applied to fuel companies like shell and bp and not those providing energy to homes?
Maybe I am speaking personally because we were transferred to Shell when our previous supplier went bust but the local energy supplier Scottish and Southern Energy made a profit before tax of (£m)1,164.0 which was up 44% so it isn't just the likes of Shell and BP who need to lower there prices.
Rather than opting for a windfall tax (or whatever you want to call it) why not tell the energy companies to drop the standing charge or reduce the unit cost by a set percentage. To me that would be the fairest solution. They should also limit the increase to a set percentage when the next cost of living increase is due. I don't know whether that is feasible or not but to me it seems a simple solution.
Won’t this largely be applied to fuel companies like shell and bp and not those providing energy to homes?
Maybe I am speaking personally because we were transferred to Shell when our previous supplier went bust but the local energy supplier Scottish and Southern Energy made a profit before tax of (£m)1,164.0 which was up 44% so it isn't just the likes of Shell and BP who need to lower there prices.
The suppliers to the consumer will operate at a margin - the bigger the raw material price from the suppliers of fuel for the power stations (Shell, BP et al) the higher that margin will be in cash terms for the likes of Scottish Power. The bulk of the profit rises though is with the producers of the raw material as their costs have not risen markedly compared to the global wholesale price they can sell it for.
The Council Tax rebate is very unfair as the value of a property bears no relation to the household income, and property values vary so much from the south to the north.
We live in a rented 2 bedroom bungalow in a nice area, but in a Band E, so we don't qualify for the Council Tax rebate. Someone in the north of England could have a much higher income and disposable income, than we do and may have a bigger house, but because of the difference in property prices, may live in a Band D property and qualify for the Council Tax rebate.
The only saving grace for us is that we fixed our energy price for 2 years last June, so have not yet felt the impact of the recent price increases. We currently pay £159 per month for Gas& Electricity and dread the increase from June 2023.
Also, more people generate more work i.e. costs for a lot of (but not all) the items it covers. A 25% discount for a single person is not much compared to family of 4 or 5 adults (with more adult children living at home indefinitely longer)
I also think it’s worthwhile for those of us that can afford it to start putting an item or two in the food bank donation box when we visit the supermarket. It really doesn’t have to be much but might make a huge difference to some struggling family.
Cant believe I’ve felt the need to write that in the U.K. in 2022. Absolutely shocking.
I know a couple of supermarkets were looking at it but dropped the idea, but having the ability to round up your shopping bill to the nearest pound with the difference going to a food bank would also really add up and allow the food banks to buy exactly what they need (they always have a surplus of some items and not enough of others).
A good friend of mine is CEO of The Hygiene Bank, they are also a very worthy cause as people tend to drop those type of products before food/fuel.
my local Tesco has a round up donation facility, in this case for the Red Cross .. also when booking at Travelodge there is a facility to donate 50p or so to MacMillan cancer care
I should have added this only applies to the self service check outs ..
My mum is with Scottish Power and her fixed term finishes on Tuesday. The best new fixed rates offered to her are showing as £450+ a month.
Can that be right with the price cap? She is currently paying £150pcm. She is not running a cannabis farm either!
Fixed rates do not have the price cap applied to them. In the good old days they were often much lower, but now all fixes are far higher than the price cap.
If you would like to go into the price cap, you do nothing, let your fixed contract expire, you then automatically get put onto their "standard" tariff, which is the price cap.
My mum is with Scottish Power and her fixed term finishes on Tuesday. The best new fixed rates offered to her are showing as £450+ a month.
Can that be right with the price cap? She is currently paying £150pcm. She is not running a cannabis farm either!
Fixed rates do not have the price cap applied to them. In the good old days they were often much lower, but now all fixes are far higher than the price cap.
If you would like to go into the price cap, you do nothing, let your fixed contract expire, you then automatically get put onto their "standard" tariff, which is the price cap.
My mum is with Scottish Power and her fixed term finishes on Tuesday. The best new fixed rates offered to her are showing as £450+ a month.
Can that be right with the price cap? She is currently paying £150pcm. She is not running a cannabis farm either!
Fixed rates do not have the price cap applied to them. In the good old days they were often much lower, but now all fixes are far higher than the price cap.
If you would like to go into the price cap, you do nothing, let your fixed contract expire, you then automatically get put onto their "standard" tariff, which is the price cap.
Thanks, so best to go on the standard tariff?
That's a tough one.
If you want to guarantee that you will pay the lowest amount you can for NOW, then yes.
However, a good fix, whilst currently above where the price cap is today, might be lower than where the price cap is in October, and after a presumably further rise in April.
Martin Lewis is a good one to follow on this, and everything else related to personal finance for that matter, and although at first he said do nothing, I think he has said that some fixes might be worth it.
It's all a symptom of a pretty broken market to be honest...
I'm currently on the Standard Tariff. I'm going with the rationale of safety in numbers!
My mum is with Scottish Power and her fixed term finishes on Tuesday. The best new fixed rates offered to her are showing as £450+ a month.
Can that be right with the price cap? She is currently paying £150pcm. She is not running a cannabis farm either!
Fixed rates do not have the price cap applied to them. In the good old days they were often much lower, but now all fixes are far higher than the price cap.
If you would like to go into the price cap, you do nothing, let your fixed contract expire, you then automatically get put onto their "standard" tariff, which is the price cap.
I suppose the problem is the associated admin processes to restrict it as well as means testing is a) costly and b) there isn't time to put it in place.
Still it would have been a surprise if the Tories did anything else.
It does seem unfair, but how to restrict it per household simply other than per meter?
If you have a second home, in theory you are only in one at any one time so only using minimal power at the other. Unless of course some of the family are at one and the others at the other.
Until lockdown, Shrek and I lived at my flat in Greenwich during the week and his house most weekends. We didn't use more power than if we lived in just the one place, but not nearly twice as much (standing charge, heating on low in the coldest months, lights on for security as well as fridge/freezer etc) living at one place, as we do now (as I have rented out my flat). Quite rightly, now we will only qualify for 1 payment. I think if we had received 2, we would donate the second payment - although not sure who to as would want it to go to the most needy e.g. really can't heat and eat
Salvation Army, THE best charitable organisation i m o
Really?
Just think how much they could do for good if they didn't waste so much money on pointless uniforms and musical instruments. Not to mention the shiny headquarters building slap bang in the middle of London.
And that's before you start on all the religious mumbo jumbo. I don't need "salvation" thanks very much, so they can fuck right off.
I suppose the problem is the associated admin processes to restrict it as well as means testing is a) costly and b) there isn't time to put it in place.
Still it would have been a surprise if the Tories did anything else.
It does seem unfair, but how to restrict it per household simply other than per meter?
If you have a second home, in theory you are only in one at any one time so only using minimal power at the other. Unless of course some of the family are at one and the others at the other.
Until lockdown, Shrek and I lived at my flat in Greenwich during the week and his house most weekends. We didn't use more power than if we lived in just the one place, but not nearly twice as much (standing charge, heating on low in the coldest months, lights on for security as well as fridge/freezer etc) living at one place, as we do now (as I have rented out my flat). Quite rightly, now we will only qualify for 1 payment. I think if we had received 2, we would donate the second payment - although not sure who to as would want it to go to the most needy e.g. really can't heat and eat
Salvation Army, THE best charitable organisation i m o
Really?
Just think how much they could do for good if they didn't waste so much money on pointless uniforms and musical instruments. Not to mention the shiny headquarters building slap bang in the middle of London.
And that's before you start on all the religious mumbo jumbo. I don't need "salvation" thanks very much, so they can fuck right off.
I suppose the problem is the associated admin processes to restrict it as well as means testing is a) costly and b) there isn't time to put it in place.
Still it would have been a surprise if the Tories did anything else.
It does seem unfair, but how to restrict it per household simply other than per meter?
If you have a second home, in theory you are only in one at any one time so only using minimal power at the other. Unless of course some of the family are at one and the others at the other.
Until lockdown, Shrek and I lived at my flat in Greenwich during the week and his house most weekends. We didn't use more power than if we lived in just the one place, but not nearly twice as much (standing charge, heating on low in the coldest months, lights on for security as well as fridge/freezer etc) living at one place, as we do now (as I have rented out my flat). Quite rightly, now we will only qualify for 1 payment. I think if we had received 2, we would donate the second payment - although not sure who to as would want it to go to the most needy e.g. really can't heat and eat
Salvation Army, THE best charitable organisation i m o
Really?
Just think how much they could do for good if they didn't waste so much money on pointless uniforms and musical instruments. Not to mention the shiny headquarters building slap bang in the middle of London.
And that's before you start on all the religious mumbo jumbo. I don't need "salvation" thanks very much, so they can fuck right off.
dickhead !!
You most certainly are.
Or are we all supposed to agree with whatever you say?
Sally Army have their hearts in the right place but I do agree there is no point in this day and age for them to have all the way over the top trappings. They don’t need the uniforms and religious stuff. Saving souls is so 18th century. It turns people off. They’re stuck in the Victorian age. They do good work all the same.
Sally Army have their hearts in the right place but I do agree there is no point in this day and age for them to have all the way over the top trappings. They don’t need the uniforms and religious stuff. Saving souls is so 18th century. It turns people off. They’re stuck in the Victorian age. They do good work all the same.
Steady there SHG, or you'll be called a "dickhead" by the colonel-in-chief!
Sally Army have their hearts in the right place but I do agree there is no point in this day and age for them to have all the way over the top trappings. They don’t need the uniforms and religious stuff. Saving souls is so 18th century. It turns people off. They’re stuck in the Victorian age. They do good work all the same.
Steady there SHG, or you'll be called a "dickhead" by the colonel-in-chief!
Sally Army have their hearts in the right place but I do agree there is no point in this day and age for them to have all the way over the top trappings. They don’t need the uniforms and religious stuff. Saving souls is so 18th century. It turns people off. They’re stuck in the Victorian age. They do good work all the same.
Do they still rattle their collection boxes outside pubs at chucking out time like they used to in the old days.
What’s going completely under the radar it seems to me is the fact that standing charges are going up across the country by an average of around 81%. Why ? The inability to supply gas and electricity cheaply is understandable but what’s changed in standing charges which pay for the cables and pipes etc that warrants such a massive increase and at a time when the uncontrollable aspects of energy are causing people to not heat their homes. What the fuck are Offgem or whatever the regulator is called these days doing ? Eff all is the answer.
The various regulators exist to pay a nice fat salary to the CEO and a few others. And give the public the impression the government actually cares. Surely everybody knows that? Name a regulator that is fit for purpose. Ummm...
I think something died in the National character after 1.3 million people marched in the hope of averting Tony Bliar from bombing the hell out of Iraq in pursuit of the fictitious WMD. I sometimes wonder if the enormous number of people HAD pulled BLiar back from the brink, that we would all have been buoyed by democracy actually doing what it says on the tin and peaceful public protest actually DOES SOMETHING.
If it DID, I have no doubt that atvl ~ 1.3 million people would be on the street tomorrow protesting the punitive and disgraceful hikes to the prices of utilities as of 1st April. Let noone think otherwise ~ this is going to bury A LOT of people already stretched by the cost of living...
This is worse than the Thatcher poll tax. At least there was a vestige of belief that the PT was paying for, or investing in future, local council services. As SHG points out ~ the standing charges (which have nothing to do with the price of energy going up) has nearly doubled overnightm
O to have the Yellow Vests here...
I expect a month or so of moaning into ones pint with a bunch of other moaners (The British way!) and then,after yet another dodged battle and cowardice, resignation to one's plight and an adding to the family debt mountain...
Thanks. This looks much better than donating to a food bank, which I know do brilliant stuff for some people but doesn't fit with my criteria (of the most needy)
I just want to know that what I donate goes to the most needy and not those that can get help that honestly don't need it as much
Yeah... Have worked for two major charities. Those most in need ALWAYS get ignored for those that will give a better press story.
Bit ambiguous a statement Dazzler. I would agree those MOST in need always miss out and those who can "perform to the gallery" always get the pie..But without being clear WHO such persons or groups are ~ one has no way of really being able to agree or disagree to your point..
Comments
To me that would be the fairest solution.
They should also limit the increase to a set percentage when the next cost of living increase is due.
I don't know whether that is feasible or not but to me it seems a simple solution.
The suppliers to the consumer will operate at a margin - the bigger the raw material price from the suppliers of fuel for the power stations (Shell, BP et al) the higher that margin will be in cash terms for the likes of Scottish Power. The bulk of the profit rises though is with the producers of the raw material as their costs have not risen markedly compared to the global wholesale price they can sell it for.
My mum is with Scottish Power and her fixed term finishes on Tuesday. The best new fixed rates offered to her are showing as £450+ a month.
Can that be right with the price cap? She is currently paying £150pcm. She is not running a cannabis farm either!
If you would like to go into the price cap, you do nothing, let your fixed contract expire, you then automatically get put onto their "standard" tariff, which is the price cap.
If you want to guarantee that you will pay the lowest amount you can for NOW, then yes.
However, a good fix, whilst currently above where the price cap is today, might be lower than where the price cap is in October, and after a presumably further rise in April.
Martin Lewis is a good one to follow on this, and everything else related to personal finance for that matter, and although at first he said do nothing, I think he has said that some fixes might be worth it.
It's all a symptom of a pretty broken market to be honest...
I'm currently on the Standard Tariff. I'm going with the rationale of safety in numbers!
Just think how much they could do for good if they didn't waste so much money on pointless uniforms and musical instruments. Not to mention the shiny headquarters building slap bang in the middle of London.
And that's before you start on all the religious mumbo jumbo. I don't need "salvation" thanks very much, so they can fuck right off.
Or are we all supposed to agree with whatever you say?
If it DID, I have no doubt that atvl ~ 1.3 million people would be on the street tomorrow protesting the punitive and disgraceful hikes to the prices of utilities as of 1st April. Let noone think otherwise ~ this is going to bury A LOT of people already stretched by the cost of living...
This is worse than the Thatcher poll tax. At least there was a vestige of belief that the PT was paying for, or investing in future, local council services. As SHG points out ~ the standing charges (which have nothing to do with the price of energy going up) has nearly doubled overnightm
O to have the Yellow Vests here...
I expect a month or so of moaning into ones pint with a bunch of other moaners (The British way!) and then,after yet another dodged battle and cowardice, resignation to one's plight and an adding to the family debt mountain...
Heaven help us..