What is the refund policy?

A refund check is issued to a taxpayer who has a credit balance on an account, provided that the taxpayer supplies the town with the proper documentation confirming payment and provided there are no other outstanding taxes due and payable to the town from any other year or on other property owned by the taxpayer.

Along with your written request for a refund, it is important to provide check copies, both front and back, to ensure that payments made to your account were made by you, or made by your bank/mortgage company on your behalf.  That documentation is necessary to guard against mistakes made by banks and/or mortgage companies where payments have been incorrectly applied and to ensure refunds are issued to the party making the payment.  It is the town's  policy not to refund overpayments until the end of the fiscal year.  If an overpayment was made in one quarter, the overpayment will be credited towards the next quarter's bill.  Credit balances do not automatically move from one fiscal year to the next.  The fiscal year begins on July 1 and ends on June 30.

If a credit is caused by an overpayment, a written request for a refund must be accompanied by copies of cancelled checks (front and back) for the fiscal year in which the credit exists.  If payment was by cash, please provide the original receipts with the letter requesting the refund.

If the credit was caused by an abatement, the refund will automatically be issued unless the property had changed ownership during the fiscal year.  The refund will usually be refunded to the record owner as of January 1 as it appears on the tax bill; however, if the property has been sold during the fiscal year to a new owner, the date of the deed will determine who is eligible for the refund and on whose behalf payments were made.

Regarding motor vehicle excise, a refund will be issued if there is a credit balance due to an abatement after the bill has been paid in full.