How to find out if you'll get a £150 council tax rebate amid soaring energy bills

Many households in England struggling to pay soaring energy bills will be able to receive support to help cover the costs through a council tax rebate.

Regulator Ofgem announced on Thursday it will raise the energy price cap by 54% from April 1, meaning households will see bills increase by around £700 per year.

Customers paying default tariffs by direct debit will see annual bills rise by £693 from £1,277 to £1,971 per year.

Those using prepayment meters - also known as a "pay as you go" system typically used by households with lower incomes - will see an increase of £708 from £1,309 to £2,017.

In a bid to help remove "the sting" of the energy crisis, Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced that households in England in council tax bands A to D will receive a £150 rebate.

Households will be able to receive the rebate from April and it will not need to be repaid.

The chancellor also announced that all households will get £200 off their energy bills from October, which will be paid back in higher bills over the next five years. This applies to customers in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

How do I work out my council tax band?

People living in England can find out which council tax band they are in by using the government's online checker here.

You can also use the service to challenge your council tax band if you believe it is incorrect.

If you can't use the online service, you can also challenge your band by calling or email the Valuation Office Agency (VOA).

Do I need to apply for the tax rebate and when will I receive it?

The government said it expects the "vast majority" of people who pay by Direct Debit to receive the rebate money in April.

Local authorities will use taxpayers' bank account details to credit their account with a one-off payment of £150.

For households in Bands A-D who do not pay by Direct Debit, their councils will be ready to process their claims in April, said the government.

What are council tax bands?

The chancellor said only those in council tax bands A-D in England will be able to receive the rebate.

There are eight council tax bands ranging from A-H.

Each property is valued and placed in one of the eight council tax bands by the VOA. The band your home is in determines how much you pay to the council per month.

The bands are based on what a home might have sold for in April 1991. Even if the property you live in was built more recently, its band is still based on an estimation of what its value would have been in 1991.

For more information about how homes are assessed for council tax bands, the VOA sets out the criteria here.

Will a council tax rebate be available for Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland?

Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are expected to receive approximately £565 million of Barnett funding (a formula to ensure public expenditure in the devolved nations matches that in England) to provide their own energy support packages.

Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, who is yet to set out her government's plans, "welcomed" Mr Sunak's efforts to help mitigate the rising price cap - but said they "do not go far enough".

Energy regulator Ofgem said the steep price hike will be "extremely worrying for many people" and advised customers who are struggling to contact their supplier to access support available as soon as possible.