Appeals

Details of your rights of appeal are set out below. Please contact Council Tax section if you need further advice.

Making an appeal does not allow you to withhold payment of tax owing in the meantime. If your appeal is successful you will be entitled to a refund of any overpaid tax.

The grounds for appeal about valuation banding should be made to the Valuation Office in Tunbridge Wells and are restricted to the following cases:

Where you believe that the banding should be changed because there has been a material increase or material reduction (this is explained below) in the dwelling's value
Where you start or stop using part of your dwelling to carry out a business, or the ratio between domestic and business use changes
Where the Listing Officer has altered a list without a proposal having been made by a taxpayer
Where you become the taxpayer in respect of a dwelling for the first time, your appeal must be made within six months, but if the same appeal has already been considered and determined by a Valuation Tribunal, it cannot be considered again

Appeals should be made to the Listing Officer - not the Council - at:

Valuations Office Agency
Union House
Eridge Road
Tunbridge Wells
Kent
TN4 8HF
Call 01892 796700
www.voa.gov.uk

A material increase in value may result from building, engineering, or other work carried out on the dwelling. In these cases revaluation does not take place until after a sale - so the person appealing would usually be the new owner or resident.

A material reduction in value may result from the demolition of any part of the dwelling, any change in the physical state of the local area or an adaptation to make the dwelling suitable for use by someone with a physical disability. In these cases revaluation should take place as soon as possible.

You may appeal to the Council if you consider that:

The Council is sending bills to the wrong person
Your dwelling qualifies as exempt
The Council has made a mistake in calculating your bill (e.g. a discount has not been allowed or the bill has been calculated using the wrong band)

If you wish to appeal, write to the Council Tax Manager so that he has the opportunity to consider your case. If you have not been contacted within two months, or if no agreement has been reached by this time, you may appeal directly to:

Clerk to the Tribunal
Kent Valuation Tribunal
Coronet House
45 Albion Place
Maidstone
Kent
ME14 5DZ
Call 01622 670372

Sevenoaks District Council,
Council Offices,
Argyle Road,
Sevenoaks,
Kent
TN13 1HG

01732 227000