Jonathan, a Community Housing Advice Development Partner, recently received a call from one of our partner agencies. Their client, Rosa, had asked for advice about her benefits, so they contacted Jonathan for his expert housing input.
Rosa had recently been allocated a housing association tenancy after being in temporary accommodation for a couple of years. As soon as she got the keys, she moved all her possessions to her new home. Her new bed hadn’t been delivered on time, so she spent the first night at her friend’s house.
Rosa mentioned this to the Housing Benefit office. They told her this meant there had been a break in her Housing Benefit entitlement. They explained they would have to close her Housing Benefit claim, and she must now claim Universal Credit instead.
Moving from Housing Benefit to Universal Credit
There are certain circumstances when someone must claim Universal Credit housing costs instead of Housing Benefit:
- a new claim
- natural migration
- managed migration
New claimants can no longer apply for legacy benefits like Job Seekers Allowance or Housing Benefit and must apply for Universal Credit.
Natural migration happens to claimants when there are certain changes in circumstances, including if:
- a partner joins or leaves their household
- they become responsible for a child
- they are no longer eligible for legacy benefits
Managed migration is the process the government is currently following to move all benefit claimants off legacy benefits and onto Universal Credit. Legacy benefit claimants will all eventually be moved to Universal Credit through managed migration, even if there is no change in circumstances.
Benefit claimants subject to managed migration will receive transitional protection payments. This means their income should not be reduced because of moving to Universal Credit.
New applicants or applicants who naturally migrate to Universal Credit are not entitled to the same payment protection and may see their income drop.
Once a person has applied for Universal Credit, they can never return to legacy benefits.
Rosa was keen to avoid an unnecessary application for Universal Credit. Jonathan agreed to support her with this.
Using case law to challenge Housing Benefit decisions
With Rosa’s permission, Jonathan agreed to look into the Housing Benefit decision more. He knew there was case law that confirmed a tenant is occupying their home if they have moved in all their possessions. Jonathan began researching Housing Benefit commissioner’s decisions.
The judgment in commissioner’s decision CH/2957/2004 confirmed this position. The circumstances of this case were very similar to Rosa’s. When deciding a tenant’s move-in date, the judgment says:
“the claimant had moved into the flat for the purposes of regulation 5(6) when she removed all her furniture from her previous home and moved it into the new flat”.
This meant that Rosa had moved straight into her flat, even if she didn’t spend the first night there. There was no break in her claim that would result in her housing benefit claim being cancelled.
Informal representations
Jonathan contacted the Housing Benefit office on Rosa’s behalf and drew their attention to this commissioner's decision. Initially, they were unwilling to reconsider their position on Rosa’s application. He asked them to:
- hold off on making a final decision to cancel Rosa’s Housing Benefit claim and
- consult with their policy department on the commissioner’s decision
The Housing Benefit team got back in touch soon after. They consulted with their policy department, who confirmed that Jonathan’s argument was correct. Rosa had taken up occupation of the property the day she moved her belongings in.
Rosa’s Housing Benefit was reinstated, and she avoided the stress of having to apply for Universal Credit while settling into her new home.
Challenging a Housing Benefit decision
If Housing Benefit had been unwilling to consider Jonathan’s informal representations, he would have had to request a formal revision of their decision within 28 days. This is the first step in challenging a Housing Benefit decision.
Appealing Housing Benefit and Universal Credit housing costs decisions requires expert support. If you or someone you are working with needs help with challenging a decision Contact us
