Little known council tax rule lands locals in court with £13k bill
Cash-strapped councils are taking holiday let owners to court for backdated payments after a change in law.
Holiday let owners in Wales are being taken to court by local councils after a little-known law change. The cash-strapped authorities are now attempting to retrieve funds through backdated bills, which is “devastating” to homeowners who have “lost sleep” over the situation. Owners have received threatening legal letters claiming they owe amounts reaching into the tens of thousands.
The sums are attributed to historic council tax bills following a policy change to business rate rules in 2023. Holiday let owners were previously required to have visitors stay 70 nights of the year to qualify for business rates, meaning they are exempt from council tax. However, this figure was increased to 182 nights in April 2023.
Not only did the target more than double, but the law change included a backdated clause, meaning the requirement must have been met for the year before the new rule was implemented.
As a result of this, home owners across Wales are facing huge legal challenges as many claim they were unaware of the backdated policy change. Welsh Labour have argued that anyone affected by the change were sent letters of warning in October 2022, but residents oppose this.
One furious local is being taken to court over a £13,000 bill. Speaking to The Telegraph, she explained the sleep she had lost in the situation.
After being informed she had failed to meet the backdated target, she was hit with the five-figure sum and given just 7 days to pay it.
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“There is something really sinister going on. It’s like playing a football match, you are well into the second half and then suddenly the referee says ‘oh but the rules have changed now’,” the 59-year-old home owner, who wishes to remain anonymous, told the newspaper.
She now has to appear before a magistrates' court in May, according to reports.
The majority of holiday let owners are expected to fail the “confusing” 182-day backdated requirement, Alun Evans, of law firm Beven Buckland, said. As of the last census, approximately 10,070 second homes were used as holiday homes in Wales.
The Express has contacted Pembrokeshire Council for comment.
