The Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit (Decisions and Appeals) Regulations 2001

Decisions superseding earlier decisionsE+W+S

7.—(1) Subject to the provisions in this regulation, the prescribed cases and circumstances in which a decision may be made under paragraph 4 of Schedule 7 to the Act (decisions superseding earlier decisions) are as set out in paragraph (2).

(2) The appropriate relevant authority may make a decision under paragraph 4 of Schedule 7 to the Act upon its own initiative or on an application made for the purpose on the basis that the decision to be superseded is a decision—

(a)in respect of which–

(i)there has been a change of circumstances [F1since the decision had effect ]; or

(ii)it is anticipated that a change of circumstances will occur;

(b)which is erroneous in point of law or made in ignorance of, or was based upon a mistake as to, some material fact provided that the decision—

(i)cannot be revised on the basis of that error, ignorance or mistake; and

(ii)is not a decision prescribed in regulations under paragraph 6(2)(e) or (4)(a) of Schedule 7 to the Act;

(c)which adopts a rent officer’s determination[F2, board and attendance determination, broad rental market area determination or local housing allowance determination] and in consequence of a rent officer’s redetermination, substitute determination [F3substitute redetermination, board and attendance redetermination, substitute board and attendance determination, substitute board and attendance redetermination, amended broad rental market area determination or amended local housing allowance determination] made under the Rent Officers (Housing Benefit Functions) Order 1997 or the Rent Officers (Housing Benefit Functions) (Scotland) Order 1997 the amount which represents the rent for the purposes of calculating entitlement to benefit is reduced;

(d)[F4of [F5an appeal tribunal, the First-tier Tribunal, the Upper Tribunal or of a Commissioner] that was made in ignorance of, or was based upon a mistake as to, some material fact;]

[F4of [F5an appeal tribunal, the First-tier Tribunal, the Upper Tribunal or of a Commissioner] —

(i)that was made in ignorance of, or was based upon a mistake as to, some material fact; or

(ii)that was made in accordance with paragraph 17(4)(b) of Schedule 7 to the Act, in a case where paragraph 17(5) of that Schedule to the Act applies;]

(e)which is prescribed in regulations made under paragraph 6(2)(e) or (4)(a) of Schedule 7 to the Act;

F6(f). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

[F7(g)which is affected by a decision of the Secretary of State that a sanctionable benefit payable to a claimant ceases to be payable or falls to be reduced under section [F86B,] 7 or 9 of the Social Security Fraud Act 2001 and for this purpose “sanctionable benefit” has the [F9meaning given in section 6A] of that Act; or

(h)which is affected by a decision of the Secretary of State that a joint-claim jobseeker’s allowance ceases to be payable or falls to be reduced under section 8 of the Social Security Fraud Act 2001.]

[F10(i)where—

(i)[F11“except where sub-paragraph (o)[F12, (p)[F13, (q) or (s)]] applies,] the claimant has been awarded entitlement to housing benefit or council tax benefit; and

(ii)subsequent to the first day of the period to which that entitlement relates, the claimant or a member of his family becomes entitled to an award of a relevant benefit within the meaning of section 8(3) of the 1998 Act or an increase in the rate of that relevant benefit.]

[F14(j)where—

(i)the claimant or his partner makes, or is treated as having made, an election for a lump sum in accordance with—

(aa)paragraph A1 or 3C of Schedule 5 to the Contributions and Benefits Act;

(bb)paragraph 1 of Schedule 5A to that Act; or, as the case may be,

(cc) paragraph 12 or 17 of Schedule 1 to the Social Security (Graduated Retirement Benefit) Regulations 2005;

or

(ii)such a lump sum is repaid in consequence of an application to change an election for a lump sum in accordance with regulation 5 of the Social Security (Deferral of Retirement Pensions, Shared Additional Pension and Graduated Retirement Benefit) (Miscellaneous Provisions) Regulations 2005 or, as the case may be, paragraph 20D of Schedule 1 to the Social Security (Graduated Retirement Benefit) Regulations 2005.]

[F15(k)that housing benefit is payable to a claimant where that benefit is reduced under regulation 4 of the Pilot Scheme Regulations (reduction of benefit);

(l)made under sub-paragraph (k) and the claimant is a person in hardship under regulation 5 of the Pilot Scheme Regulations (meaning of “person in hardship”);

(m)made under sub-paragraph (k) or (l) where section 130B(6) of the Contributions and Benefits Act applies so that the restriction period under that section stops running;

(n)made under sub-paragraph (m) where section 130B(6) of that Act applies so that the restriction period starts running again.]

[F16(o)where—

(i)the claimant has been awarded entitlement to housing benefit or council tax benefit;

(ii)the claimant or the claimant’s partner has made a claim for employment and support allowance;

(iii)subsequent to the first day of the period to which entitlement to housing benefit or council tax benefit relates, the Secretary of State has decided that the claimant or the claimant’s partner has, or is to be treated as having, limited capability for work within the meaning of section 1(4) of the Welfare Reform Act or limited capability for work-related activity within the meaning of section 2(5) of that Act; and

(iv)either—

(aa)the assessment phase as defined in section 24(2) of the Welfare Reform Act has ended; or

(bb)regulation 7 of the Employment and Support Allowance Regulations 2008 (circumstances where the condition that the assessment phase has ended before entitlement to the support component or the work related activity component arises does not apply) applies.]

[F17(p)where—

(i)the claimant has been awarded entitlement to housing benefit or council tax benefit;

(ii)the claimant or the claimant's partner has had an award of benefit converted to an employment and support allowance in accordance with regulation 5(2)(a) of the Employment and Support Allowance (Transitional Provisions, Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit) (Existing Awards) (No. 2) Regulations 2010; and

(iii)subsequent to the first day of the period to which that entitlement to housing benefit or council tax benefit relates, the Secretary of State makes a decision to supersede the award of employment and support allowance to award a different component;]

[F17(q)where the claimant has been awarded entitlement to housing benefit or council tax benefit and subsequent to the first day of the period to which that entitlement relates—

(i)a conversion decision of the kind set out in regulation 5(2)(a) of the Employment and Support Allowance (Transitional Provisions, Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit) (Existing Awards) (No. 2) Regulations 2010 takes effect in respect of the claimant or the claimant's partner; or

(ii)[F18the claimant or the claimant’s partner is appealing a conversion decision] as described in regulation 5(2)(b) of the Employment and Support Allowance (Transitional Provisions, Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit) (Existing Awards) (No. 2) Regulations 2010 and is treated as having limited capability for work by virtue of regulation 30 of the Employment and Support Allowance Regulations 2008 as modified by the Employment and Support Allowance (Transitional Provisions, Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit) (Existing Awards) (No. 2) Regulations 2010.]

[F19(r)which as a consequence of regulation 75D of the Housing Benefit Regulations reduces housing benefit to apply the benefit cap or increases or decreases such a reduction (including a decrease to nil).]

[F20(s)which is affected by the award of personal independence payment under Part 4 of the Welfare Reform Act 2012 where—

(i)the claimant, the claimant’s partner or a member of the claimant’s family (“P”) was entitled to disability living allowance under section 71 of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992; and

(ii)subsequent to the first day of the period to which the claimant’s entitlement to housing benefit relates, P becomes entitled to personal independence payment as a transfer claimant (within the meaning of regulation 2(1) of the Personal Independence Payment (Transitional Provisions) Regulations 2013).]

F21(2ZA) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

F22(2A) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

F23(2B) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

F23(2C) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(3) The reference to a change of circumstances in paragraph (2)(a) shall include changes of circumstances specified in F24[F25..., regulation 74(3) of the Council Tax Benefit Regulations or regulation 59(3) of the Council Tax Benefit (State Pension Credit) Regulations (changes of circumstances which do not need to be notified).]

(4) A decision which may be revised under regulation 4 may not be superseded under this regulation except where—

(a)circumstances arise in which the appropriate relevant authority may revise that decision under regulation 4; and

(b)further circumstances arise in relation to that decision which are not specified in regulation 4 but are specified in paragraph (2) or (5).

(5) Where the appropriate relevant authority requires further evidence or information from the applicant in order to consider all the issues raised by an application under paragraph (2) (“the original application”), the authority shall notify the applicant that further evidence or information is required and, if it does so, the decision may be superseded—

(a)where the applicant provides further relevant evidence or information within one month of the date of notification or such longer period of time as the appropriate relevant authority may allow; or

(b)where the applicant does not provide such evidence or information within the time allowed under sub-paragraph (a), on the basis of the original application.

(6) The appropriate relevant authority may treat an application for a revision or a notification of a change of circumstances as an application for a supersession.

(7) An application under this regulation shall be made in writing and delivered, by whatever means, to the relevant authorityF26....

Textual Amendments

F11Words in reg. 7(2)(i) inserted by SI 2008/1082 reg. 3(3)(a) (as substituted) (27.10.2008) by The Employment and Support Allowance (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2008 (S.I. 2008/2428), regs. 1(2), 26

F16Reg. 7(2)(o) added by SI 2008/1082 reg. 3(3)(b) (as substituted) (27.10.2008) by The Employment and Support Allowance (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2008 (S.I. 2008/2428), regs. 1(2), 26

F21Reg. 7(2ZA) omitted (with application in accordance with reg. 1(3)-(5) of the amending S.I., 6.4.2009 in so far as not already in force) by virtue of The Housing Benefit (Local Housing Allowance, Miscellaneous and Consequential) Amendment Regulations 2007 (S.I. 2007/2870), regs. 1(2), 4(2)(a)

F23Reg. 7(2B)-(2C) omitted (with application in accordance with reg. 1(3)-(5) of the amending S.I., 6.4.2009 in so far as not already in force) by virtue of The Housing Benefit (Local Housing Allowance, Miscellaneous and Consequential) Amendment Regulations 2007 (S.I. 2007/2870), regs. 1(2), 4(2)(a)

F24Words in reg. 7(3) omitted (with application in accordance with reg. 1(3)-(5) of the amending S.I., 6.4.2009 in so far as not already in force) by virtue of The Housing Benefit (Local Housing Allowance, Miscellaneous and Consequential) Amendment Regulations 2007 (S.I. 2007/2870), regs. 1(2), 4(2)(b)