A full-time carer has accused the council of “financially destroying” him after his garage rents more than doubled in a matter of months.

Frank McDonald, of Menon Drive, Edmonton, feels Enfield Council is discriminating against him by unfairly classing him as a private renter and charging him higher rents than for other social housing tenants.

The 65-year-old’s garage rents almost doubled from £72 per month to more than £130 per month on April 1.

Then, in May, he was told the council had been undercharging him for the past 12 years due to an error it made when setting up his account – meaning he would have to start paying around £180 a month to rent the garage.

Mr McDonald said: “They are absolutely financially destroying me and my partner. They can’t be allowed to get away with this.

“I can’t afford £65 out of my pension. They have changed the direct debit to £180 to get the retrospective clawback – it is just not on.

“They are treating me and my partner disgracefully.”

Mr McDonald is a full-time carer for his 70-year-old partner, who has cancer.

They were moved out of Tintagel House tower block in 2001, when it was earmarked for demolition, and transferred to housing association Metropolitan Housing Trust.

Mr McDonald, who receives a carer’s allowance and housing benefit, claimed the council was discriminating against him by treating him differently from other social housing tenants.

He said: “How can you deem me a private let, living in social housing supported by housing benefit and council tax discount?”

Mr McDonald has rented the garage on Cedars Court since 2006 and uses it to store his 1970s Bond Bug.

He said: “This car is 50 years old. My partner bought it for me for my 21st birthday. I can’t have it out on the street – it would be stolen.”

He added that he had looked outside the borough for an alternative garage but was told he would have to go on a waiting list.

Mr McDonald said the storage space on offer in Haringey was a “cage” and would not be suitable for his car.

He said he had made a formal complaint to the council and had also written to three Enfield MPs but they had not been in touch.

Mr McDonald added that he submitted a Freedom of Information request in June and found out 353 garage tenants had been hit by the £60 rent hikes.

As a result, 37 people had already given up their tenancies.

The council said it would not comment on individual cases.

An Enfield Council spokesperson said: “Enfield Council has historically charged a very low rent for garages for private users, and, in comparison to garage rents in the open market, our charges are not reflective of the market rates.

“It was therefore decided that for private users they would be charged a market rent for the use of garages, after a number of years of significantly subsidised rent levels.”