Peterborough Council catches people wrongfully claiming discounts on council tax as collection rates drop
Peterborough City Council has offered an explanation as to why its council tax collection rates were below target in the last financial year.
A corporate performance report will be presented to cabinet on Tuesday, June 17 which states that a council review of the single person discount found many ineligible accounts in 2024/25.
People can qualify for a single person council tax discount of 25 per cent if they are the only adult in the household.
However, the council says that a removal of a number of these discounts at the end of the year affected the collection rate.
Staffing shortages also played a part in the lower collection rate, but the council says recent recruitment has resolved this.
Councillor Mohammed Jamil, deputy leader of the council and cabinet member for finance and corporate governance, said: “We are fully committed to protecting public funds and recently carried out a review of council tax payers claiming a single person discount to identify where this discount was being claimed in error.
“Reviews will continue to be undertaken, ensuring that everyone is contributing their fair share towards council tax.
“Our council tax collection rate in 2023/24 was 95.68 per cent and in 2024/25 was 95.17 per cent. The target for in-year collection is 95.8 per cent.
“Collection rates last year were low partly because of the number of single person discounts that were removed towards the end of the year that would not have been collected by March 31, however these balances will continue to be collected during 2025/26.”
Cllr Jamil noted that the collection target was for March 31, and that recovery of the remaining balances would continue into the following months, with the final collection figure expected to be greater than 98.5 per cent.
He added: “Recent recruitment has also resolved staffing shortages and the council is investigating options for improved online forms, automation and self-service functionality to help improve customer service, processing times and collection rates in the future.”
The collection of business rates in Peterborough stands at 98.3 per cent, surpassing the council’s target of 97.8 per cent.
The last three years have seen the highest rates recorded in Peterborough and the council says its focus in early 2025/26 will be on improving arrears collection, which is currently at relatively low levels.