From June 2026 the Council will be working with NEC Software Solutions UK Limited to carry out a review of over 19,000 single person discounts which are currently being awarded.  

Why are the single person discount’s being reviewed?

Every year it is estimated that £60 million worth of Single Person Discount (SPD) is fraudulently claimed across the UK  which is impacting upon the already overstretched budgets of Local Authorities all over the country. The Council has a duty to its tax payers to ensure that discounts are awarded correctly.

Telford and Wrekin Council, in partnership with NEC Software Solutions UK Limited are undertaking an evidence based single person discount review, using a combination of Council data, third party data sources and specialist validation services. This is to:

  • Reaffirm the discount for genuine claimants efficiently and accurately.
  • Remove ineligible or erroneous discounts and increase revenue for the Council.
  • To provide ‘fairness for all’ residents so that those who are paying the correct level of Council tax are not subsidising their fellow citizens who are erroneously claiming the discount.

How is the discount checked and what data is used to check my discount?

Address details of all residents claiming the single person discount are passed to Experian. Experian analyses this information using data matching techniques in order to establish whether there is evidence of any other adults living at the claimant’s address. To do this, Experian matches the claimant’s address information against a range of public and proprietary data sources which includes the electoral register and its own consumer information. No credit checks are performed against any individual as part of this process. Experian then provides NEC Software Solutions UK Limited with a list of addresses with a high likelihood of being occupied by more than one adult and therefore not entitled to receive the discount on council tax

What is the process for the review?

All accounts that currently have a single person discount are being checked and where there appears to be a discrepancy a review form will be sent.

Customers will be given 3 weeks to respond to the first letter and if no response is received, a reminder letter will be sent.

If there is still no response after a further 3 weeks, the discount will be removed. If it turns out a discount has been removed but the customer should still receive it, the discount will be put on to the account again once we have confirmation that they are the only adult in the property.

I have received a letter from NEC Software Solutions UK Limited; is this genuine?

Yes. All completed review forms and phone calls in relation to this discount review exercise are being dealt with by NEC Software Solutions UK Limited.    Once the particular case has been dealt with, all forms and documentation associated with the council tax account will be scanned and returned to the council.   All images will be destroyed by NEC Software Solutions UK Limited  so no data is held by them longer than is necessary.

Who are NEC Software Solutions UK Limited ?

NEC Software Solutions UK Limited are a well-known, reputable company who specialize in the provision of Revenues and Benefits software, and dealing with Revenues and Benefits processing work for many Local Authorities throughout Great Britain. They employ a large number of highly experienced staff to carry out this work and have successfully conducted single person discount reviews for a number of Local Authorities.

I need some help completing my review form

You should contact NEC Software Solutions UK Limited on the following telephone number: 01952 479091.

Their phone lines are open between 9:00 am and 1 7 :00 pm Monday to Friday.