The Council Tax Reduction Schemes (Detection of Fraud and Enforcement) (Wales) Regulations 2013

Notices

15.  The notice to which regulations 13 and 14 refer must contain the following information—

(a) the manner specified by the billing authority by which P may—

(i) agree to pay a penalty;

(ii) notify the withdrawal of P’s agreement to pay a penalty;

(b) that if P wishes to withdraw the agreement, P must notify the withdrawal to the billing authority within 14 days (including the date of the agreement);

(c) that if an agreement is withdrawn, so much of the penalty as has already been recovered will be repaid and P will no longer be immune from proceedings for an offence;

(d) that the payment of a penalty does not give P immunity from prosecution in relation to any other excess reduction or (in a case to which regulation 14 refers) any other act or omission;

(e) that if P alleges that there is no power in the case concerned to impose a penalty of the amount imposed, P may appeal to a valuation tribunal under paragraph 3(4) of Schedule 3 to the 1992 Act(1) against the imposition;

(f) in a case to which regulation 13 refers—

(i) that if P pays the penalty specified in the written notice in the manner specified in the written notice, the proceedings to which regulation 13(1)(c) refers will not be instituted against P;

(ii) that the penalty only applies to the award of a reduction under the billing authority’s council tax reduction scheme greater than the amount of reduction to which the person was entitled under the scheme;

(iii) that the penalty only applies where it appears to the billing authority that the award of the excess reduction was attributable to an act or omission by P and that there are grounds for instituting proceedings for an offence relating to the excess reduction;

(iv) that the penalty is 50% of the amount of the excess reduction (subject to the minimum and maximum amounts set out in regulation 13(2));

(v) that the penalty is payable in addition to repayment of the excess reduction;

(vi) the method by which the excess reduction is recoverable;

(vii) that if it is subsequently decided that an excess reduction has not been awarded, so much of the penalty as has already been recovered will be repaid;

(viii) that if the amount of the excess reduction is revised by the billing authority, except as covered by a new agreement to pay the revised penalty, so much of the penalty as has already been recovered will be repaid and P will no longer be immune from proceedings for an offence;

(g) in a case to which regulation 14 refers—

(i) that if P pays the penalty specified in the written notice in the manner specified in the written notice, the proceedings to which regulation 14(1)(a) refers will not be instituted against P;

(ii) that the penalty only applies where it appears to the billing authority that—

(aa) there are grounds for instituting proceedings against P for an offence relating to an act or omission on the part of P in relation to a council tax reduction scheme; and

(bb) the act or omission could have resulted in the amount of council tax P is liable to pay being reduced under a council tax reduction scheme by an amount greater than the amount of reduction to which P was entitled under the scheme;

(iii) that the penalty is £100; and

(iv) the method by which the penalty is recoverable.

(1)

1992 c. 14; sub-paragraph (4) was inserted by section 14 of the Local Government Finance Act 2012 (c. 17).