Kirklees Council has defended its letters to householders asking if they are still living alone.
People in single person households are given a 25% discount on their council tax.
Tens of thousands recently received a letter asking them to go onto the council’s website to confirm they still lived alone.
Those who don’t will have their discount removed, potentially costing them hundreds of pounds a year.
The Examiner has received a complaint that there is no way for people who do not have the Internet to comply with the system.
A spokesman for Kirklees Council said: “The letter encourages residents to contact us via the Internet as this is the most efficient method of contacting the council.
“We have used this method for previous reviews where the council identified almost £500,000 had been wrongly claimed in discount and we are not aware of anyone who hasn’t received their discount as a result of the way we conduct our reviews.
“Whilst we are keen to encourage people to use the web to get in touch, other methods of contacting the council are detailed on the annual council tax bills, which would have been received prior to this letter.”
