The Social Security (Income and Capital Disregards) (Amendment) Regulations 2023

Amendment of the Universal Credit Regulations 2013

8.—(1) The Universal Credit Regulations 2013(1) are amended as follows.

(2) In regulation 76 (special schemes for compensation etc.)—

(a) omit paragraph (1)(a)(vi);

(b) in paragraph (1A)—

(i) omit sub-paragraph (c);

(ii) after sub-paragraph (d) insert—

“(e) the Post Office or the Secretary of State for the purpose of providing compensation or support which is—

(i) in connection with the failings of the Horizon system; or

(ii) otherwise payable following the judgment in Bates and Others v Post Office Ltd ((No. 3) “Common Issues”)(2).”;

(c) after paragraph (1A) insert—

“(1B) This regulation also applies where a person receives a payment made for the purpose of providing compensation or support in respect of the fire on 14th June 2017 at Grenfell Tower.

(1C) This regulation also applies where a person—

(a) receives a vaccine damage payment or is a person for whose benefit a vaccine damage payment is made;

(b) is the partner(3) of a person referred to in sub-paragraph (a) and receives a payment by or on behalf of that person which is derived from a vaccine damage payment;

(c) was the partner of a person referred to in sub-paragraph (a) immediately before the latter’s death and receives a payment from their estate which is derived from a vaccine damage payment;

(d) in a case where a vaccine damage payment is made to the personal representative of a person who was severely disabled as a result of vaccination (“P”), was P’s partner immediately before P’s death and receives a payment from P’s estate which is derived from a vaccine damage payment.”;

(d) after paragraph (3) insert—

“(4) In this regulation—

“the Horizon system” means any version of the computer system used by the Post Office known as Horizon, Horizon Legacy, Horizon Online or HNG-X;

“the Post Office” means Post Office Limited (registered number 02154540);

“vaccine damage payment” means a payment made under the Vaccine Damage Payments Act 1979.”.

(1)

S.I. 2013/376. Relevant amending instruments are S.I. 2020/618 and 2021/1405.

(2)

[2019] EWHC 606 (QB).

(3)

See regulation 2 of the Universal Credit Regulations 2013 for the definition of “partner”.