Single person discount

What is Single Person Discount?

Council Tax is charged based on the assumption that there are at least two adults living in a property.

If only one adult lives in a property, the Council Tax bill can be reduced by 25%. This is known as a Single Person Discount.

How do I apply for Single Person Discount?

You can now apply for Single Person Discount online. 

Single Person Discount Review 2019/20

Along with other councils in East Sussex, we are reviewing how many people may be incorrectly claiming a Single Person Discount. The review will help keep Council Tax as low as possible for all Council Tax payers.

Each year local authorities receive a high volume of applications for the 25% Single person's Council Tax discount. There are currently 17,000 people in Hastings claiming Single Person Discount. This reduces the annual Council Tax bill by £496 for a Band D property. Some residents may fail to report a change in circumstances that would change their entitlement to this discount. 

With other councils in East Sussex, we have commissioned Datatank to carry out the review.

Datatank Ltd uses a combination of Council data, third party data sources and specialist validation services. This is to:

• confirm the discount for genuine claimants efficiently and accurately.
• remove ineligible or incorrect claims and increase revenue for the Council.

To provide "fairness for all" residents so that those that are paying the correct level of Council Tax are not subsidising their fellow residents who are incorrectly claiming the discount.

What should you do now if you have received a letter from us?

Complete your Single Person's Discount Review online.

Please confirm your current details by clicking on the Single Person's Discount Review link above.

To access your form you will need to enter your unique PIN number. You can find this PIN number on the letter we have sent to you.

If you have any questions regarding the form or require further information click on the link below to access the frequently asked questions page.

Got a question about the Single Person Discount Review?

Find out the answer on our Single Person Discount Review frequently asked questions page.