Energy bill rebate: pay your Council Tax by direct debit to receive it quickly

Residents in St Albans District are urged to claim a £150 rebate off their energy bills quickly by paying their Council Tax by direct debit.

The cash payment will be paid to most households who live in properties which are banded A to D for Council Tax.

People in receipt of Council Tax Support are also entitled to the payment, but it will not be paid out to empty or second-home properties.

It is estimated, that around half of the District’s 60,000 households will be eligible.

The payment was  announced by the Government last month and is intended to help people cope with rising energy costs.

It will be paid directly to a bank account and it does not have to be repaid.

Councillor Karen Young, Lead Councillor with responsibility for Council Tax for St Albans City and District Council, said:

We want people to receive this rebate as quickly as possible.

The guidance we have from the Government is that we can pay the £150 straight into the bank accounts of households who pay their Council Tax by direct debit.

Around 80% of our households already pay by direct debit and it is by far the easiest and most convenient way to do so.

Residents in Band A to D properties who don’t pay by direct debit will receive the payment eventually, but there will be an application process during which we may need to request copies of bank statements. So, it will take some time.

Cllr Young added:

For people who pay by direct debit, we hope to make the majority of payments by late April.

Residents can sign up for direct debit payments at www.stalbans.gov.uk/MyStAlbans.

Alternatively, they can download a form at  www.stalbans.gov.uk/paying-your-council-tax .

Residents have until around  Wednesday 16 March to sign up for direct debit for the first of the 2022/23 Council Tax payments to be taken on Friday 1 April.

Residents on a low income living in properties banded E to H may be entitled to the £150 payment through a discretionary scheme operated by the Council. Details about this will be published shortly.

For further information please visit www.gov.uk/government/news/households-urged-to-get-ready-for-150-council-tax-rebate.

Councillor contact: Councillor Karen Young, Vice Chair of the Policy Committee and Lead Councillor with Responsibility for Council Tax: cllr.k.young@councillor.stalbans.gov.uk; 07495 504570.

Contact for the media:  John McJannet, Principal Communications Officer: 01727 296130; john.mcjannet@stalbans.gov.uk