71.—(1) An applicant is to be treated as possessing capital (and is assumed to have a yield from that capital as described in regulation 63) where the applicant has, in the opinion of a relevant authority, deprived themselves of that capital for the purpose of securing entitlement to council tax reduction or an increased amount of council tax reduction.
(2) Where an applicant—
(a)deprived themselves of capital for the purpose of securing entitlement to universal credit or to an increased amount of universal credit, and
(b)was treated as possessing that capital under regulation 50 of the 2013 Regulations for the purposes of calculating the applicant’s award of universal credit,
the applicant is to be treated as possessing that capital under paragraph (1) for the purposes of calculating an applicant’s capital under these Regulations.
(3) An applicant is not to be treated as depriving themselves of capital under paragraph (1) if the applicant disposes of it for the purposes of—
(a)reducing or paying a debt owed by the applicant, or
(b)purchasing goods or services if the expenditure was reasonable in the circumstances of the applicant’s case.
(4) For the purposes of this regulation, “deprived” includes a failure to make an application for capital that would have been acquired by the applicant had it been sought.