Somerset Council Tax Reduction for Disabled Residents: PIP, DLA, and Carer Disregards

Somerset Council's working-age CTR scheme includes specific protections for disabled residents and carers — but the scheme also has a gap that's become the subject of a High Court challenge. Understanding which disability income is disregarded and which isn't could make the difference of hundreds of pounds on your council tax bill.

What's Fully Disregarded

When Somerset Council calculates your assessable weekly income, the following disability-related payments are completely ignored:

• Personal Independence Payment (PIP) — both daily living and mobility components
• Disability Living Allowance (DLA) — care and mobility components
• Attendance Allowance
• Armed Forces Independence Payment
• ESA Support Component — the disability-related top-up within Employment and Support Allowance
• Carer's Allowance — fully ignored in the income assessment

None of these payments count toward the income that determines which band you fall into. For example, if a single person's counted income is £90.50 per week and they also receive PIP, the PIP is ignored and the £30 disability disregard leaves £60.50 assessable income — within the single-person Band 1 threshold for a 100% discount.

The £30/Week Disability Income Disregard

On top of ignoring the disability benefits listed above, Somerset Council subtracts a flat £30.00 per week from your total assessable household income if you, your partner, or a dependent child receives PIP, DLA, or Armed Forces Independence Payment.

This disregard stacks with the £25/week earnings disregard if you work. So a disabled person earning £150/week net would have their income calculated as: £150.00 − £25.00 (earnings) − £30.00 (disability) = £95.00 assessable income — Band 1 for a single person.

The Universal Credit Disability Gap

Here's where it gets complicated — and controversial. If you're on Universal Credit and receive the Limited Capability for Work (LCW) or Limited Capability for Work-Related Activity (LCWRA) element, that UC disability component is not given any special disregard under Somerset's current 2026/27 scheme. It's counted as regular income.

This creates a perverse outcome: disabled residents who were on legacy ESA with passported 100% CTR can lose most of their discount after managed migration to Universal Credit, despite having exactly the same income and disability needs. The ESA Support Component was fully disregarded; the equivalent UC LCWRA element is not.

This is the exact issue at the heart of the Leigh Day judicial review against Somerset Council, which the High Court granted permission to proceed in January 2026. The council's Task and Finish Group has proposed introducing a UC LCW/LCWRA income disregard for the 2027/28 scheme, but that doesn't help anyone in the current financial year.

Carer Protections

If you receive Carer's Allowance, the full payment is disregarded from your income assessment. But there's a separate protection that often gets missed: the carer disregard for council tax purposes.

If you live with a disabled person who is not your partner and provide 35+ hours of care per week, you may be "disregarded" for council tax counting purposes — meaning you're not counted as an adult occupier. If the disabled person is the only other adult in the property, this can unlock a 25% Single Person Discount on the gross bill before CTR is even calculated.

This is separate from Carer's Allowance (you can qualify for the carer disregard without receiving Carer's Allowance) and separate from CTR. It reduces the base bill, which in turn reduces the amount CTR has to cover.

Getting All the Protections You're Entitled To

The disability protections in Somerset's scheme only work if the council knows about them. When you apply for CTR:

• Attach your PIP or DLA award letter so the council applies the £30/week disability disregard
• Declare Carer's Allowance separately — don't assume the council will pick it up from your DWP records
• Ask about the council tax carer disregard if you provide 35+ hours of care — this is a different application from CTR

Our Somerset Council Tax Reduction guide breaks down every disability-related disregard with worked examples showing the income calculation step by step, including the UC disability gap and what to do about it.

See more England guides →