South Gloucestershire Council has apologised to its residents, saying some will only receive their £150 council tax rebate in early June. That's despite the government saying people would receive it "in April".
A spokesperson for the council said: “We are working through the £150 council tax rebates as fast as we can, subject to the limits of our finance system in handling large numbers of payments to residents. Most households that pay by direct debit will receive their payment by the beginning of June.
"We apologise for the delay and thank residents for their patience while we continue to process this. For customers who do not have a direct debit set up, we will be sending a letter in the post in the next few weeks.
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The council has, at least, started rolling out the payments, and is being open about when people will receive the money. It says it has started rolling out the payments to people who pay their council tax by direct debit on the fourth of each month; anyone who pays their instalments by direct debit on day 12, 20, or 25 will receive their £150 soon, it says, while anyone paying another way will be written to "towards the middle of May".
The council also warned of scammers attempting to defraud residents by masquerading as local councils. The spokesperson continued: "We will not be contacting any direct debit customers for bank details. If you receive anything about the rebate and you are unsure if it is genuine, please get in touch.”
All councils in the Bristol area are running behind schedule. North Somerset Council said its residents who pay by direct debit would receive the rebate "by Tuesday 26 April".
Some North Somerset residents have confirmed they have received the money, while one - who pays by direct debit - confirmed they had not. The council did not respond to a request for comment.
Bristol City Council does not appear to have started paying the money to its residents, with multiple Bristolians reporting they are yet to receive their £150. When asked when the payment would be made, a Bristol City Council spokesperson told Bristol Live yesterday: "We are expecting an update on council tax rebates later this week. There is currently no further detail to share."
Pressed again on whether the payments would be made by the end of the month, the spokesperson did not respond. The council's dedicated web page, meanwhile, says: "Arrangements are being made to implement the council tax rebate scheme and we will provide more information as soon as possible."
The page is yet to be updated with information on how to claim if you do not pay your council tax by direct debit. People who do pay by direct debit will receive it automatically.
Rishi Sunak, the chancellor, announced the £150 rebate in February. He said at the time: "We are going to give people a £150 council tax rebate to help with the cost of energy in April, and this discount will not need to be repaid."
He repeated that claim later the same day, saying: "Those in council tax bands A to D will get £150 in April," though by March he had softened his language, saying: "Households in England will receive £150 starting this April."
The government is providing the money, with councils tasked with getting it to their residents. It is to be paid to all households in bands A to D, meaning around 80 per cent of homes in England will benefit.
The rebate is separate to the £200 coming off energy bills in October. That money will need to be repaid, in five instalments of £40 each over the next five years.
