Council tax benefit - overpayments
Summary
An
overpayment is an amount of benefit that has been paid to someone when they were not entitled to it under the Regulations.
Further information
Causes of overpayments
An example would be if a claimant failed to tell the Council that their income had increased and a recalculation of their entitlement meant that they had been paid too much Benefit.
What happens when an overpayment is found?
We will do the following:
- Identify the period, amount and cause of the overpayment;
- Decide whether the overpayment is legally recoverable;
- Decide whether to recover the overpayment; and
- Decide from whom the recovery should be sought
We will then write to you with the details. The letter we send you will tell you:
- Why we gave you too much benefit
- How much the overpayment is
- If you have to pay back the amount
- How you can appeal if you think this is wrong
What should I do if I disagree with that decision?
You should ask us straightaway if you want the decision explained to you, if you want the decision looked at again, or if you want to appeal against it. You must do so within one month of the date of the decision letter. For more details of this process, see our page on benefit appeals.
What if the overpayment was not my fault?
If you reported a change to us at the time it occurred, but we did not act on it for a long time, we will not automatically ask you for it to be repaid. We will consider whether you could reasonably have known that you were being overpaid benefit at the relevant time.
Overpayments due to delayed benefit awards
Sometimes, you may be claiming housing and/or council tax benefit whilst you are waiting for another Social Security benefit to be awarded. If you are then awarded the other benefit, this may result in an overpayment of housing and/or council tax benefit. We will usually ask for this to be repaid.
Related pages on this website
Contact us
| Officer / Team | Revenues Team |
|---|---|
| Postal address | Blaby District Council Council Offices Desford Road Narborough Leicester LE19 2EP |
| E-mail address | revenues@blaby.gov.uk |
| Telephone | 0116 272 7530 |
| Fax | 0116 272 7790 |
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This page was last updated on 21st August 2009
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