Martin Lewis has urged millions of unpaid carers to check if they are owed thousands of pounds after dozens of councils updated their Council Tax rules advice. The MoneySavingExpert.com (MSE) founder says that incorrect information on council websites may have deterred up to five million carers from claiming a live-in Carer Council Tax discount, with potential backdated payments worth between £500 and £1,000 per year since 2013.
Council Tax Discount Eligibility Expanded in 2013
The live-in Carer Council Tax discount allows carers to be disregarded for Council Tax purposes. If the carer is the only other person in the household, the property qualifies for the 25% single person discount. However, eligibility criteria were extended in 2013 to include additional disability benefits, but many councils failed to update their websites accordingly.
MSE's investigation in January 2026 found that 69 out of over 200 councils in England and Wales displayed incorrect or incomplete qualifying criteria. A further 80 councils had no easily accessible online information about the required benefits. The errors likely deterred carers from applying or led to wrongful rejections.
Corrected Information and Backdated Claims
Since the investigation, all 69 councils have corrected their online information. Martin Lewis now encourages carers who previously thought they were ineligible to recheck their eligibility using resources like Carers UK's help pages. He advises those who missed out due to council errors to request a backdated discount to the point of first eligibility, though rules vary by council.
Helen Walker, chief executive of Carers UK, praised MSE for highlighting the issue, stating that caring often brings extra costs and financial strain. She noted that the correction of misleading information is an excellent result, but urged councils to recognize the pressures carers face.
Qualifying Benefits for the Discount
To qualify for the live-in Carer discount, the carer must provide at least 35 hours of free care per week to someone in their household who is not a spouse, partner, or child under 18. The person being cared for must receive one of the following disability benefits:
- Before 2013: Higher rate Attendance Allowance, increased Constant Attendance Allowance, higher rate care component Disability Living Allowance, or increased rate Disablement Pension.
- Since 2013, additional benefits include: Any amount of Armed Forces Independence Payment, lower rate Attendance Allowance, middle rate care component Disability Living Allowance, and standard or enhanced rate daily living component Personal Independence Payment.
Many councils wrongly excluded the post-2013 benefits, only mentioning higher rates or omitting certain benefits entirely. The investigation also found that some councils failed to mention Armed Forces Independence Payment or Personal Independence Payment at all.
Government and Political Response
Following the investigation, the UK Government issued a letter to English councils in February 2026, urging them to prioritize the accuracy of Council Tax support information. Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey also said he would address the issue with councils displaying incorrect information after being questioned on ITV's Good Morning Britain.
MSE was first alerted to the problem by a user who was incorrectly rejected for the discount but successfully claimed with help from a specialist charity. The likely cause was that many councils had not updated their websites since the 2013 rule changes.
Carers living in Scotland were not affected as qualifying benefits differ there. MSE's investigation focused on England and Wales, where the majority of offending councils have now rectified their online information.
