The government's council tax band checker website went down after the Budget announcement revealed a £100 energy payment for households in council tax bands A to D. The site, used by millions to verify their eligibility, crashed due to a surge in traffic.
Chancellor John Healey presented the Budget to the House of Commons earlier today, marking the first Budget from Andy Burnham's government. Among the measures announced, the £100 household energy payment is intended to help around 20 million households deal with rising bills "through to the spring," at a total cost of £2.6 billion.
Chancellor's Announcement
Mr Healey said: "Let me say this to families at home. I know that with the conflict in the Middle East, rising energy bills are a real worry. I know that people look to Government at times like this, not to solve all their problems, but to give them a bit of breathing space."
He added: "So today I'm taking one further step. This winter, for 20 million households in council tax bands A to D, I am announcing a £100 energy payment for households, paid directly into people's bank accounts to deal with rising energy bills. That's a £2.6 billion scheme to take the pressure off in the coldest months and see people though to the spring."
Website Crash and Recovery
Following the announcement, the government website used to check council tax banding experienced high volumes of traffic, leading to error messages for users entering their postcodes. The site displayed messages such as "Sorry, there is a problem with the service" and "please try again later."
The service has since been restored, and many people are now checking whether they qualify for the extra £100 towards their energy bills. This winter is expected to be particularly expensive due to price increases resulting from instability caused by the Iran War.
