Martin Lewis' word of warning to anyone paying council tax as 100,000s of people are 'missing out' on discount

Martin Lewis has issued a word of warning to anyone who is paying council tax on their home. The financial guru, who is the founder of MoneySavingExpert, has said that hundreds of thousands of people could be 'missing out' on getting a discount of up to 50 percent off their payments.

In a seven minute-long explainer video posted on Twitter on April 25, which has since amassed more than 285,000 views, Martin Lewis said that those paying council tax in England, Scotland and Wales could be owed a backdated payout of thousands of pounds if they have been overpaying their tax.

The warning comes as council tax is expected to rise by five percent for millions of homeowners and tenants in April - but your monthly payments could be reduced significantly if you are eligible for one of the discounts available.

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In a tweet sent out to his 2.2 million followers, Martin wrote: "Are you due a council tax discount? 100,000s are missing out (& some maybe due backdated payouts too) so I’ve quickly filmed a video briefing to take you through it. Please share with anyone it is relevant to…".

The video began with the money-saving expert explaining that the discount could mean your council tax is lowered substantially going forward, but you could also be due a backdated payout from when you were eligible that may be worth thousands of pounds.

Martin then explained how council tax is calculated, and that it doesn't just go off the value of your house, but who lives in it.

If you are aged 17 years old or younger, or you are a student in full-time education, then you are not classed as a qualifying adult and therefore should not be paying council tax.

"If there are