Appeals

What you can appeal against

You can make an appeal against the following

• The banding of your property
• That you are liable for Council Tax
• The award of a Council Tax discount, exemption or disabled relief
• The issue of a penalty notice
• The amount of Council Tax Benefit or Second Adult Rebate

Banding appeals

You may appeal about your banding if

• You have been liable for your property for less than six months and can demonstrate that its value at April 1 1991 would have been in a different band

• You believe that your property's value has altered enough to merit an alteration in band, eg as a result of a change in the physical state of the area or the demolition or conversion of part of the property

Please remember that all Council Tax valuations are based on April 1991 values; general changes in the level of house prices since then are not grounds for appeal. Banding appeals must be made to The Valuation Office Agency and not to Southwark Council.

Liability appeals

If you believe someone else should be liable for the Council Tax you can appeal to Southwark Council. We work out who has to pay by referring to the Council Tax Hierarchy. If there is more than one person who fits the same description, they will be jointly responsible for paying the Council Tax bill.

Council Tax reductions

Contact Southwark Council if you wish to appeal about the award of

• A Council Tax discount
• A Council Tax exemption
• Council Tax disabled relief

Penalty notices

A penalty notice for £50 can be issued if

• We have requested information on the liable person and you have failed to provide it
• You have knowingly provided inaccurate information
• You have failed to notify us that a property is not or no longer under exemption from Council Tax
• You have failed to notify us that the Council Tax discount was incorrect or should not have applied

If you have been issued with a penalty notice and you wish to appeal you should put your request, and the reasons for it, in writing. Ideally this should be within 14 days and whilst you are waiting for us to respond you do not need to pay the penalty.

How to appeal

If you wish to appeal against the banding of your property, this should be made to the listing officer of the Valuation Office and not to Southwark Council.

In order to view the form you will need to have Adobe Acrobat Reader installed on your computer. Click here to download the Adobe Acrobat Reader.

Click here to make an online appeal on the Valuation Office's website. Alternatively, you can make a written appeal and send it to the following address

Lambeth Valuation Office
2nd Floor
Wingate House
93/107 Shaftsbury Avenue
London
W1D 5BU

Tel: 020 7445 0200
Fax: 020 7445 0299

All other appeals should be made to Southwark Council in writing and sent to

The Council Tax Office
Liberata (L B Southwark)
P.O.Box 782
Bromley
BR1 3YE

By email

You may also click here to download an Appeals form (pdf 256kb) which you will need to print, fill in and send to us at the above address.

When making any appeal you must ensure that you state clearly your reasons for the appeal.  Following your appeal we will reconsider our decision and advise you of the outcome. If, however, you are still not satisfied, you can make a further appeal to the Valuation Tribunal (this will be detailed in our reply).

In the meantime

If you appeal you must continue to pay in line with your current Council Tax bill. If your appeal is granted you will then be issued with a further bill and new payment instructions. This will take account of any payments you have already made.

Contact us

By telephone

Housing and council tax benefit
020 7525 1880

Council tax
020 7525 1850

By post

Council Tax Section
London Borough Of Southwark
P.O. Box 782
Bromley
BR1 3YE

Please indicate which department your query is for.

In person

Bermondsey One Stop Shop
Spa Road
Bermondsey
SE16 3QN

Peckham One Stop Shop
Ground Floor
Peckham Library
122 Peckham Hill Street
SE15 5JR

Walworth One Stop Shop
151 Walworth Road
London
SE17 1RY

Dulwich Area Housing Office
41-43 East Dulwich Road
Dulwich
SE22 9BY

All one stop shops are open from Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm. In addition, Peckham one stop shop is open on Saturday, 9am to 1pm.

By email

Housing/council tax benefit: Soucounciltaxuk@Liberata.com
Council tax: Soucounciltaxuk@Liberata.com