Check my band
One band too high costs up to £797 a year

Pay your fair share.
Not a penny more.

Find out in two minutes if your Council Tax band is too high, and whether it's safe to challenge. If it isn't, we'll tell you that too.

Check my band, free

Built on public records

Free checkers show you your neighbours' bands. We tell you whether it's safe to act on them.

a year, the cost of one band too high at the 2026-27 England average
£266 to £797
the earliest a refund can reach, if you've lived there that long
1993
of challenges ended in a higher band, April 2023 to March 2024
<1%

Two tests, and both must agree

We only say "challenge" when the evidence is on your side twice over.

Test 1

Your neighbours

Are similar homes on your street in a lower band than yours? This is the evidence the Valuation Office Agency weighs most.

Test 2

Your home in 1991

Bands are set on April 1991 values. We estimate yours from Land Registry sales, adjusted back with the House Price Index, and show it as a range.

The safety check

Could it backfire?

If your own band looks too low, or a neighbour you'd cite looks under-banded, we say so plainly and tell you not to challenge.

The free check

Check your band

Start with what's on your bill for a first read. Add your neighbours' bands from gov.uk for the full verdict.

Step 1 · From your bill

Tell us about your home

Your band now
It's printed on your Council Tax bill.
Free. Takes about a minute. England only.

Our promise

Fair works both ways.

Fighting for homeowners means fighting for the right band, not just a lower one. Your street should be banded fairly, and your neighbours shouldn't pay for your challenge.

  • We'll tell you when your band looks too low. A review starts from scratch. If the evidence says you could go up, you'll hear it from us first.
  • We never cite a neighbour who looks under-banded. Naming them could get their band raised instead of yours lowered.
  • No pack when the answer is don't. We'd rather lose the sale than sell you a challenge that could cost you.

The challenge pack · £29

Everything the VOA asks for, ready to send.

When both tests agree, we write your challenge for you. You check it, sign it and send it. We never send anything on your behalf.

  • A letter worded for your route: a proposal if you moved in within 6 months, or a band review
  • Up to five similar homes in a lower band, the evidence the VOA asks for first
  • Your home's 1991 value, with the sales behind it and an honest note on how much weight it carries
  • A guidance page for you: what happens next, how long it takes, and what could go wrong

Questions

The honest answers

Can challenging put my band up?

Yes. A review looks at your band from scratch, so it can go down, stay the same or go up. It's rare: less than 1% of challenges the VOA resolved from April 2023 to March 2024 ended in a higher band. An increase only applies from the day the list changes, so you'd never get a bill for past years. We check for it anyway, and tell you to leave it when the evidence points that way.

Why does 1991 matter?

Bands in England are based on what a home would have sold for on 1 April 1991. Nobody has that figure for your home, so we estimate it from Land Registry sales since 1995, adjusted back with the UK House Price Index. It's always a range, never a single number, and it gets wider when there are fewer sales to go on.

Why do I have to copy my neighbours' bands from gov.uk?

The gov.uk band checker's terms allow personal use only, so we can't look up your street for you. You can, and you can bring the results to us. It's one copy and paste per page of results.

Can my neighbours' bands go up because of me?

They can, if you name a neighbour whose own band looks too low. That's why we estimate each neighbour's value too, and leave anyone who looks under-banded out of your evidence. We tell you who we left out and why.

Do you send the challenge for me?

No. We prepare it and you send it, to the Valuation Office Agency online or by email. We never contact the VOA or your council on your behalf.

How long does it take?

If you started paying in the last 6 months, you have a legal right to challenge (a "proposal"). The VOA aims to decide within 4 months, and you can appeal to the Valuation Tribunal. After 6 months it's a "band review": up to 12 months, and no appeal if they say no.