Getting a refund can sometimes seem like a lot of hard work for a small reward but there are some cases when you should make the effort to argue. Here are three things you can do to claim back cash.
Get a Tax Rebate
Your tax code can seem like a series of meaningless numbers but these particular numbers are used by employers to calculate the amount of tax that should be deducted from wages and pensions before they get to your bank account.
If you pay your tax through PAYE, the code will tell your pension provider or employer what they should take and small errors can lead to you being £100s of pounds out of pocket. You can usually find your tax code on p45s or payslips. Just remember that every different source of income will have a different code, so make sure you check them all!
How to Get the Money Back
When you’ve got your code you can use an online tax calculator to discover how much you should be paying and then start claiming it back if you’ve overpaid. If you’ve been underpaying, you haven’t won. One day the tax man will realise the mistake and you’ll be left with a massive bill. It’s better to sort out the error now rather than later.
Mis sold PPI
The number of people who have been mis sold PPI in the last decade is in the millions. If you took out a loan or credit card in the past ten years that included payment protection insurance, it’s very likely that you’ll be able to claim back the PPI premiums plus all the interest you paid.
Bankers and lenders were mis selling the PPI policies until very recently. Loans don’t generate a huge profit which is why they sold expensive insurance policies to go with them. These policies were potentially worthless and now you may be entitled to getting your money back. The money you can claim back from mis sold PPI may even be in the thousands.
How to make your claim
It’s really easy to claim back PPI. There are many companies that specialise in making a claim for you usually on a no win no fee basis.
Council tax Rebanding
When the new council tax system was set up in 1991 the government didn’t have time to go round valuing all the houses so they got estate agents to help them. Even with their help they didn’t have time to get the precise information together so they did it by driving down the road and allocating a council tax band with a glance. It’s possible you could be paying more tax than your neighbour even though you live in the same sized house.
How much will you get back?
If your house has been put in the wrong band you will not only make a yearly saving of several hundred pounds but are also entitled to the money you’ve overpaid since you moved into the property. This can mean you’ll get back thousands of pounds.
Anna used to be an accountant, but now works as a personal finance advisor, as she saw many people being exploited during her previous job.