Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint that the Council failed to apply a rent increase to the complainant’s housing benefit. This is because the complainant could have used his review and appeal rights.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I refer to as Mr X, says the Council owes him £40 in housing benefit because it did not increase his benefit after his rent increased in April 2018.

Back to top

The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. The Local Government Act 1974 sets out our powers but also imposes restrictions on what we can investigate.
3. The law says we cannot normally investigate a complaint when someone can appeal to a tribunal. However, we may decide to investigate if we consider it would be unreasonable to expect the person to appeal. (Local Government Act 1974, section 26(6)(a), as amended)
4. The Social Entitlement Chamber (also known as the Social Security Appeal Tribunal) is a tribunal that considers housing benefit appeals. (The Social Entitlement Chamber of the First Tier Tribunal)

Back to top

How I considered this complaint

5. I read the complaint and the Council’s responses. I considered the letter Mr X sent to the Council stating his rent had increased. I also considered the housing benefit decision letter the Council sent to Mr X in April 2018. I invited Mr X to comment on a draft of this decision.

Back to top

What I found

Housing benefit

6. If someone disagrees with a housing benefit decision they can ask for a review or appeal to the tribunal. If they have a review, and are unhappy with the decision, they can then appeal to the tribunal. The law says people should appeal within one month of the date of the decision they think is wrong.

What happened

7. Mr X wrote to the Council in March 2018 to say that his rent was increasing to £57.34 a week from 2 April. The Council says it did not receive this letter.
8. The Council sent Mr X a housing benefit decision letter on 4 April 2018. The letter said he had been awarded housing benefit of £55.19 a week based on a weekly rent of £55.19. The letter said he had one month to ask for a review or to appeal to the tribunal if he disagreed with the decision. Mr X did not ask for a review or appeal.
9. Mr X contacted the Council in March 2019 to say he had been underpaid housing benefit since April 2018 because the Council had not increased his housing benefit to reflect the rent increase. In response the Council said it had not received the letter about the rent increase. It also said Mr X could have challenged the April housing benefit decision. The Council declined to pay any additional benefit to Mr X from April 2018.

Assessment

10. I will not start an investigation because Mr X could have asked for a review, or appealed to the tribunal, if he thought the April 2018 benefit decision was wrong. The decision letter says that the 2018 housing benefit award was based on rent of £55 a week. Mr X knew his rent had increased to £57 a week. He could have contacted the Council in April to explain that the latest housing benefit letter did not reflect the rent increase. If he had done this then it is likely the Council would have changed the housing benefit decision in April 2018. It is reasonable to expect Mr X to have used his review and appeal rights because this is correct system to deal with housing benefit disputes.

Back to top

Final decision

11. I will not start an investigation because Mr X could have used his review and appeal rights.

Back to top

Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman