If you disagree with the decision made about your claim to Housing Benefit, you have one month to appeal it. You can still apply after this deadline, but you will need to supply evidence of a serious circumstance that prevented you from applying earlier.
To appeal, you will need:
- Explain why you are appealing; and
- Provide evidence supporting your claim.
How to Appeal
The council’s decision letter should inform you how to appeal, we suggest you keep a copy of everything submitted to the council if hand-delivering a letter then we strongly suggest getting a receipt from the receptionist.
If you are asked to write a letter, you should include:
- Your full name and address;
- Your National Insurance number;
- The date of the decision;
- Your specific reasons for disagreement; and
- Any reference numbers provided on correspondence
What to include
You should include all the evidence that you can to help with your claim. These can be copies – no need to include original paperwork, if you do not have a copier then the receptionist at the council may well copy them for you if requested.
The evidence will depend on your circumstances, for instance:-
- If you need to prove that you live alone: an up-to-date tenancy agreement, a letter from your landlord or ordinary proofs of address (e.g. bills) only in your name will work.
- The council missed a change you reported: send them a copy of the letter you sent, including proof of postage/receptionists receipt if you have it. If you reported it to them over the phone, ask them for a copy of the call through a ‘subject access request’. These may take up to 2 months to reach you.
- If your child is 18 or older and cannot help with rent: if your child is in full-time education or training, send them proof of registration.
- If your child is not in full-time education or training, send them copies of their bank statements or payslips so they can work out the amount to deduct from your Housing Benefit.
What if the council do not respond to me in time?
If you are in financial distress, you should inform the council.
What to do if the council disagree with your appeal
If the council do not agree with your appeal or changed their decision to be worse for you, they should automatically send it to a tribunal.
What to do if the council agree with your appeal
If the council agree with your appeal fully or partially, they will close the appeal. If you are unhappy with their decision, you should contact them and appeal to a tribunal.
How we can help
We have a specialist solicitor who can review the council’s decision – they look at 4 main issues
- Are the calculations correct – in fairness they usually do not this wrong
- Has the council have acted according to the law, again council staff rarely make this error
- Have the council staff discriminated against you in some way.
- Have the council been over harsh in their determination of assistance offered.
It is the last two that are subjective, if you feel that your situation has not been handled to your satisfaction then please get in touch.
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