More than 700 people fraudulently claiming council tax benefits have been caught through a confidential hotline.

Brighton and Hove City Council said the new telephone service could save taxpayers hundreds of thousands of pounds.

The hotline was launched just three months ago and has so far uncovered 750 people who were wrongly claiming the single person tax discount.

The information, often gleaned from anonymous callers, has saved the council more than £160,000, which will be ploughed back into services, councillors said.

The news follows the case of another benefit cheat ordered to pay back £310,000 last month at Lewes Crown Court - the biggest benefit fraud case uncovered in Brighton and Hove.

Council leader Simon Burgess said "Claiming council tax discounts or benefits when you are not entitled to them is fraud and takes money away from essential public services at a time when the council is facing big financial pressures.

"The response from the public so far has been fantastic, with people claiming discounts or benefits telling us about changes in circumstances, as well as letting us know when they suspect someone has made a fraudulent claim.

"Together we can stamp out fraud and put this money saved back into services."

The new confidential hotline for reporting fraud - 291700 - was launched in January, backed by an advertising campaign asking people to turn in fraudsters knowingly cheating the system. Anyone caught making a false claim for single person council tax credit could end up with a criminal record, as well as a fine and having to pay back all the money made.

This month the campaign has switched its concentration to housing benefit fraud.

In February, Paul Doherty, 41, was ordered by a judge to pay back the £310,000 he made on the value of his property after he falsely claimed rent for a home in Sillwood Street, Brighton.

Over a period of ten years he had repeatedly faked documents and claimed he was a tenant in the house in order to obtain housing benefit.

The confiscation order was made under the proceeds of crime legislation after the court heard the money claimed was used to pay off Doherty's mortgage on the property, valued at £340,000.

A council spokesman said: "We recognise that in many instances people make genuine mistakes and we'll treat each case on it's own merits but we expect prosecutions where appropriate."