Help please housing benefit

[crock17]

if they its legislation dosent mean it is. not known for being honest are they ?

[Shoelover]

cant see anything that mentions wftc

 

https://england.shelter.org.uk/housing_advice/housing_benefit/how_housing_benefit_is_calculated

[Bazooka Boo]

now i have submitted an appeal they are really pushing me to agree a payment plan and i find that very suspicious.

 

Wait until they have carried out the appeal.

 

Any notion of a payment plan before then is a bit premature.

 

But do your own I&E and then you will be able to tell them what you can afford to pay back as part of a payment plan if needed.

[Shoelover]

Wait until they have carried out the appeal.

 

Any notion of a payment plan before then is a bit premature.

 

But do your own I&E and then you will be able to tell them what you can afford to pay back as part of a payment plan if needed.

 

Good advice.

In the appeal letter request that they consider holding recovery until the outcome of your appeal is known.

[crock17]

had a reply after my appeal

i will send the full content when i get home.

 

basically they are saying i cannot appeal because its law and sent me a DWP document stating regulation 23 of the housing benefit regulations 2006.

HB/CTB circular A30/2004 overpaid tax credits

38 if an overpayment of tax credits has occurred during a period i which HB/CTB was also payable, and the overpayment of tax credits is subsequently recovered, there is no provision in regulations to reassess the HB/CTB awarded for that period.

i have looked at regulation 32 and it dose not mention anything about overpayments

[honeybee13]

I'm sorry to hear that, crock. Please let us see depersonalised details when you can so we can see if there's anything that can be done.

 

HB

[Shoelover]

You really need to go to welfare rights with all the letters.

[crock17]

this is the actual document they have sent.

Regulation 32 Calculation of average weekly income from tax credits

6 March 2006

 

 

 

(1)

This regulation applies where a claimant receives a tax credit.

 

(2)

Where this regulation applies, the period over which a tax credit is to be taken into account shall be the period set out in paragraph (3).

 

(3)

Where the instalment in respect of which payment of a tax credit is made is—

 

(a)

a daily instalment, the period is 1 day, being the day in respect of which the instalment is paid;

 

(b)

a weekly instalment, the period is 7 days, ending on the day on which the instalment is due to be paid;

 

©

a two weekly instalment, the period is 14 days, commencing 6 days before the day on which the instalment is due to be paid;

 

(d)

a four weekly instalment, the period is 28 days, ending on the day on which the instalment is due to be paid.

 

(4)

For the purposes of this regulation “tax credit’ means child tax credit or working tax credit.

 

 

 

 

 

HB/CTB Circular A30/2004

Overpaid tax credits

38 If an overpayment of tax credits has occurred during a period in which HB/CTB was

also payable, and the overpayment of tax credits is subsequently recovered, there

is no provision in regulations to reassess the HB/CTB award for that previous

period

[Shoelover]

The A30 means that the overpayment stands as it's the income you received at the time that they use. This also works in some people's favour as if you were underpaid tax credits for the period, they don't go back and decrease your HB.

Is your overpayment from your increased wages when you went self employed?

[crock17]

the increas was when i went from self employed to employed

[Shoelover]

the increas was when i went from self employed to employed

 

So the overpayment was caused by that? Did you report it at the time?

[crock17]

The overpayment was only a small amount I'm talking a couple of hundred. That's my gripe a couple of hundred over and they want thousands back

[Bazooka Boo]

The overpayment was only a small amount I'm talking a couple of hundred. That's my gripe a couple of hundred over and they want thousands back

 

Have you spoken to your local MP or councillors?

 

Have you exhausted their complaints procedure?

 

Have you got them to explain FULLY, in language you understand, HOW they have arrived at the figures they're quoting you to be repaid??

[Shoelover]

Have you spoken to your local MP or councillors?

 

Have you exhausted their complaints procedure?

 

Have you got them to explain FULLY, in language you understand, HOW they have arrived at the figures they're quoting you to be repaid??

 

How long ago was it calculated? If it's thousands it might go to the investigation team.

[crock17]

local mp is not an option staunch conservative who regularly votes against human and workers rights. in the news for telling a student to f off back to scotland

 

have councillors got any say ?

 

according to them i don't have a claim as its law (not sure about that)

 

they have explained but in there language

[Shoelover]

local mp is not an option staunch conservative who regularly votes against human and workers rights. in the news for telling a student to f off back to scotland

 

have councillors got any say ?

 

according to them i don't have a claim as its law (not sure about that)

 

they have explained but in there language

 

They are correct. The law has been correctly applied & they can not intervene.

[Bazooka Boo]

They are correct. The law has been correctly applied & they can not intervene.

 

Did you preside over this case then??

 

crock, you say your local MP isn't an option, so that tells me you've not exhausted all avenues of complaint, regardless of your opinion of your local MP and Cllrs, they have a DUTY to their constituents.

 

You need to tell them that the LA they preside over is failing its constituents, and failing to answer complaints in a language YOU understand.

 

You could of course, roll over and accept being royally shafted, which makes this whole post pretty pointless?

 

You asked for advice, some have given it, but you seem keen not to action any of it.

 

IF the LA has given you its final response, or a ''deadlock'' letter, then they will tell you who you can escalate your complaint to.

 

From what you say, this hasn't happened?

 

Go back to the LA, tell them you do not accept their response, and wish to escalate the complaint further, once its reached the top of their complaints process, they will issue you with a deadlock letter, or their final response, and it will give you the address or contact details of who you're able to escalate it to.

 

If you're unhappy with the response you get from the LA, then copy in your local MP and councillors along with your complaint, so as you can escalate this further, out of the LA's hands and onto the local government ombudsman.

 

The previous post is flippant at best.

[Shoelover]

Did you preside over this case then??

 

crock, you say your local MP isn't an option, so that tells me you've not exhausted all avenues of complaint, regardless of your opinion of your local MP and Cllrs, they have a DUTY to their constituents.

 

You need to tell them that the LA they preside over is failing its constituents, and failing to answer complaints in a language YOU understand.

 

You could of course, roll over and accept being royally shafted, which makes this whole post pretty pointless?

 

You asked for advice, some have given it, but you seem keen not to action any of it.

 

IF the LA has given you its final response, or a ''deadlock'' letter, then they will tell you who you can escalate your complaint to.

 

From what you say, this hasn't happened?

 

Go back to the LA, tell them you do not accept their response, and wish to escalate the complaint further, once its reached the top of their complaints process, they will issue you with a deadlock letter, or their final response, and it will give you the address or contact details of who you're able to escalate it to.

 

If you're unhappy with the response you get from the LA, then copy in your local MP and councillors along with your complaint, so as you can escalate this further, out of the LA's hands and onto the local government ombudsman.

 

The previous post is flippant at best.

 

No I didn't. What I'm saying is the councillor can't do anything and appeal is the only route.

 

What I am also saying is the law says that the HB can't be retrospectively adjusted because tax credits are which appears to be the crux of the matter.

[crock17]

thank you for the nudge bazooka

[crock17]

have asked them to point out the law that states wftc can not be deducted after it has been paid back. from what i have recived its a circular taged on to the bottom of regulation 32. how dose that make it law ?

[Shoelover]

have asked them to point out the law that states wftc can not be deducted after it has been paid back. from what i have recived its a circular taged on to the bottom of regulation 32. how dose that make it law ?

 

It's a clarification of reg 32, which is law. You can challenge the circular but if you are going to go down that line you need to get professional help. What I would add is it sometimes works in people's favour - tax credits were underpaid but they don't go back and amend HB.

[tomtom256]

The crux of the matter is you had the income at the time the benefit was awarded and it was awarded and calculated on the correct circumstances at that time. i.e. you received the tax credits as an income.

 

You now have to pay it back, but you still had that income to spend at the time the HB was awarded and calculated, regardless of the overpayment that has now be calculated. as such you received the correct amount of HB at the time.

[Bazooka Boo]

So all being said, there is a repayment that needs to be made, BUT, you disagree with the total amount yes?

[crock17]

actualy the crux of the matter is that i have not had the money ! its unfair unjust and probably illegal. they only target people who are not in a position to defend themselve. i was overpaid by a couple of hundred and they expect me to pay back 5k do you think that is fair ????

the system is intended to support people in need and at the time i was in need. but the LA are now manipulating the system making up rules and lying to raise revenue.

[crock17]

i disagree that what they are doing is legal. i know for a fact that if a judge says you owe money you owe money. but if you have paid the money back how can you still ow it and have it added to another debt ?