The Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulations 2008

Amendments to the Housing Benefit Regulations relating to certain types of dwelling

2.—(1) The Housing Benefit Regulations shall be amended as follows.

(2) In regulation 91A(1) (cases in which payments to a housing authority are to take the form of a rent allowance) after paragraph (2) add—

“(3) Where—

(a) the occupier of a caravan, mobile home or houseboat is liable to make payments in respect of that caravan, mobile home or houseboat and housing benefit in relation to those payments takes the form of a rent allowance; and

(b) the occupier is also liable to make payments to a housing authority in respect of the site on which that caravan or mobile home stands, or in respect of the mooring to which the houseboat is attached,

housing benefit in respect of payments to the housing authority shall take the form of a rent allowance.”.

(3) In Schedule 2 (excluded tenancies) for paragraph 3, substitute—

“3.— (1) Subject to sub-paragraph (2), this paragraph applies where the landlord is—

(a) a registered housing association;

(b) a county council, with regard to gypsies’ and travellers’ caravan or mobile home sites and caravans or mobile homes provided on those sites; or

(c) a housing authority, with regard to caravan or mobile home sites or houseboat moorings, payments in respect of which are to take the form of a rent allowance in accordance with regulation 91A(3).

(2) Sub-paragraph (1) does not apply where the local authority considers that—

(a) the claimant occupies a dwelling larger than is reasonably required by the claimant and any others who occupy that dwelling (including any non-dependants of the claimant and any person paying rent to the claimant); or

(b) the rent payable for that dwelling is unreasonably high.

(3) Where the circumstances set out in head (a) or (b) of sub-paragraph (2) exist, the authority must state this in their application for a determination.

(4) In this Schedule “gypsies and travellers” means—

(a) persons with a cultural tradition of nomadism or of living in a caravan; and

(b) all other persons of a nomadic habit of life, whatever their race or origin, including—

(i) such persons who, on grounds only of their own or their family’s or dependant’s educational or health needs or old age, have ceased to travel temporarily or permanently; and

(ii) members of an organised group of travelling show people or circus people (whether or not travelling together as such).”.

(4) In paragraph (3) the reference to Schedule 2 means Schedule 2 to the Housing Benefit Regulations—

(a) as substituted by regulation 18 of the Housing Benefit (Local Housing Allowance and Information Sharing) Amendment Regulations 2007(2); and

(b) as in force for cases to which regulation 18 of those Regulations does not have effect (non-local housing allowance cases).

(1)

Regulation 91A was inserted by regulation 2 of S.I. 2006/644.

(2)

S.I. 2007/2868.