Kingston homes on the borders of Merton and Wandsworth could be due a tax refund, after it emerged a 99-year-old map was being used to determine who paid the commons woodland levy.

Research by the Friends of Putney Common (FofPC) has revealed Wimbledon and Putney Commons Conservators (WPCC) have been using a map from 1915 to establish the levy payment area and their election footprint.

Traditionally homes within three quarters of a mile of the commons fell into the catchment.

But a revised map published by FofPC suggests some homes in new developments have been incorrectly paying the levy through their council tax – including 21 houses in Kingston Hill Place.

Other households, including developments with hundreds of homes, have been wrongly excluded.

A review is now under way to establish the number of properties incorrectly classified.

A spokesman for FofPC said: "This situation is completely unacceptable, particularly as it has gone on for decades.

"The conservators have failed to manage the most basic requirement for collecting the levy - an accurate and reliable map.

"The conservators need to explain in detail how this could have happened and why they lacked the controls to ensure that the annually collected levy was based on the most accurate information available."

FofPC called for people to be able to reclaim their payments - in some cases paid for decades.

Nick Evans, from FofPC, said the average levy paid in Wandsworth was just over £34 a year, and was likely to be the same in Kingston.

He added it was likely many other houses in Kingston were wrongly included or excluded from the levy.

David Devons, chairman of Wimbledon and Putney Commons, said: "The conservators have identified a number of apparent anomalies compared with the existing maps in respect of certain properties, particularly on the periphery of the levy-paying area.

"The conservators take their responsibilities towards the management of Wimbledon and Putney Commons very seriously, giving up many hours as volunteers to ensure the stewardship of the Commons for benefit of levy-payers and other visitors."