The Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit (Subsidy) Order 1997

Treatment of high rents

7.—(1) Except in a case to which paragraph (2) applies, this article applies in a rent allowance case where the dwelling is an excluded tenancy by virtue of paragraph 1 and any of paragraphs 5 to 9 of Schedule 1A to the Housing Benefit Regulations(1) (excluded tenancies).

(2) This article does not apply in a case where—

(a) (i) a rent is registered in respect of a dwelling under Part IV, V or VI of the Rent Act 1977(2) or Part V, VI or VII of the Rent (Scotland) Act 1984(3); or

(ii) an application has been made for such registration as is mentioned in head (i) above, but no such registration has been made because the rent officer or rent assessment committee, as the case may be, are satisfied that the rent is at or below the fair rent level; or

(b) the relevant tenancy is one to which, before 15th January 1989, the provisions of sections 56 to 58 of the Housing Act 1980(4) (assured tenancies) applied; or

(c) the relevant dwelling is situated within the area of a housing action trust established under Part III of the Housing Act 1988 (Housing Action Trust Areas)(5); or

(d) the dwelling is an excluded tenancy by virtue of paragraph 3 or 10 of Schedule 1A to the Housing Benefit Regulations(6) (excluded tenancies).

(3) Where this article applies and any part of the housing benefit qualifying expenditure of an authority, whose area is or lies within an area identified in column (1) of Schedule 5, is attributable to any allowance granted in respect of a person whose weekly eligible rent exceeds the threshold specified in relation to that area in column (2) of that Schedule, for the purposes of article 4(1)(b)(ii), the appropriate amount in respect of that allowance shall be calculated in accordance with paragraph (4).

(4) Where paragraph (3) applies and—

(a) the allowance granted is the same as or is less than the excess of eligible rent over the threshold, the appropriate amount shall be 25 per cent. of that part of the housing benefit qualifying expenditure attributable to such allowance;

(b) the allowance granted is greater than the excess of the eligible rent over the threshold, the appropriate amount shall be 25 per cent. of that part of the housing benefit qualifying expenditure attributable to such allowance which is equal to the excess, and 95 per cent. of that part of the housing benefit qualifying expenditure attributable to the balance.

(1)

Schedule 1A was inserted by regulation 13 of S.I. 1990/546.

(2)

1977 c. 42.

(3)

1984 c. 58.

(4)

1980 c. 51; section 56 and 58 were partially repealed by section 140 of and Schedule 18 to the Housing Act 1988.

(5)

1998 c. 50.

(6)

Paragraph 3 was substituted by S.I. 1995/2868.