housing benefit denied as income is zero. is that right?

gormonster

I was signing on until february of this year and receiving housing benefit. In february i signed off as i was able to make a nominal income from poker and matched betting which allowed me to care for my 3 year old daughter full time. I didn't notify the council as I was reducing my income by signing off so didn't think it would affect my housing benefit.

They have now cancelled my housing benefit on the grounds that I have no income so they cannot support me. I previously clarified with them that any income from gambling was to be considered as capital not income and that is how they had assessed it previously.

I cant find anything in the dwp hb/cbt guidance manual to back this up. Can anyone give me any advise on this?

jacques_chirac

It sounds like your HB claim was linked to a claim for IB JSA. You now need to claim on the grounds of being on a low/ no income. They may ask you for proof of how you are living - credit cards, income from MB etc.

HappyMJ

gormonster wrote: »

I was signing on until february of this year and receiving housing benefit. In february i signed off as i was able to make a nominal income from poker and matched betting which allowed me to care for my 3 year old daughter full time. I didn't notify the council as I was reducing my income by signing off so didn't think it would affect my housing benefit.

They have now cancelled my housing benefit on the grounds that I have no income so they cannot support me. I previously clarified with them that any income from gambling was to be considered as capital not income and that is how they had assessed it previously.

I cant find anything in the dwp hb/cbt guidance manual to back this up. Can anyone give me any advise on this?

I would just declare a nominal income of £70 a week from self employment. You don't need to say where it came from. The accounts you provide can just be simple line. Income (from matched betting) £70...expenses £0. Profit £70. You could declare it for tax and have no tax to pay and you could declare it for benefits and it won't affect anything. It's just easier saying you have something coming in rather than nothing. I know you don't have to declare it but you now have a cancelled claim as you can't prove how you are living on nothing.

gormonster

They suspended my claim in july when they recieved notice from the dwp that I was no longer in receipt of jobseekers. They asked for and I supplied my bank statements from the date I stopped receiving jobseekers to the date they suspened my claim and highlighted every credit into my account from gambling sites. They then decided that i was not eligible and that I owe them all benefit paid from when I signed off to the date of suspension. The reason they are giving me is that as I am depriving myself of an income they cannot award me housing/council tax benefit.

jacques_chirac

gormonster wrote: »

They suspended my claim in july when they recieved notice from the dwp that I was no longer in receipt of jobseekers. They asked for and I supplied my bank statements from the date I stopped receiving jobseekers to the date they suspened my claim and highlighted every credit into my account from gambling sites. They then decided that i was not eligible and that I owe them all benefit paid from when I signed off to the date of suspension. The reason they are giving me is that as I am depriving myself of an income they cannot award me housing/council tax benefit.

That makes sense - MB is not an income, JSA is (although you would still receive full HB whilst in receipt of JSA!). Why did you end your JSA claim?

pmlindyloo

gormonster wrote: »

They suspended my claim in july when they recieved notice from the dwp that I was no longer in receipt of jobseekers. They asked for and I supplied my bank statements from the date I stopped receiving jobseekers to the date they suspened my claim and highlighted every credit into my account from gambling sites. They then decided that i was not eligible and that I owe them all benefit paid from when I signed off to the date of suspension. The reason they are giving me is that as I am depriving myself of an income they cannot award me housing/council tax benefit.

The only time I have heard of this happening is when the JSA was contribution based.

Was your JSA contribution based?

gormonster

I ended it as i wasn't trying to get a job. Do you think their decision is correct then? I can't find anything to back that up in the hb/cbt guidance manual. It say that if a claimants income in less than or equal to their applicable amount they should receive full housing benefit. Also their capital must be less than a certain amount. My understanding is that they are supposed to asses your financial resources and apply the appropriate benefit. If i was working 4 hours a week i would receive full housing benefit but as they consider my income to be even less they say I am entitled to nothing. It doesn't make any sense and i can't find the legislation to back it up.

Housing_Benefit_Officer

Make a new claim for Housing Benefit.

Make a statement listing your total income from gambling.

Ask them to use the offsetting rules for the period of the overpayment.

I have a claimant with nil income. He lives off the produce of his small holding, he sells eggs and chickens and honey - his pigs and sheep provide meat for the year. His heat and hot water is provided by wood he cuts down and old pallets he gathers up. His siblings help him out whenever things get desperate. I am happy he has nil income.

gayleanne

It could be because whilst you are claiming JSA you get a stamp every week (Nat Ins) when you sign off you were working for yourself, so in reality you should have paid a stamp contribution. Have you registered for tax payments? also if your income from the gambling sites is more than what you were getting on JSA, then you are not in need of HB

HappyMJ

Housing_Benefit_Officer wrote: »

Make a new claim for Housing Benefit.

Make a statement listing your total income from gambling.

Ask them to use the offsetting rules for the period of the overpayment.

I have a claimant with nil income. He lives off the produce of his small holding, he sells eggs and chickens and honey - his pigs and sheep provide meat for the year. His heat and hot water is provided by wood he cuts down and old pallets he gathers up. His siblings help him out whenever things get desperate. I am happy he has nil income.

I would have thought the sales of eggs, chicken and honey count as income.

gormonster

thanks for your reply. i think this is a new claim as when I supplied the bank statements and called to check they were satisfied they told me that my claim had been cancelled as i requested them to. She said i would need to submit a new claim. I went into the offices and the girl checked it and explained there had been a confusion when they received notification that I wasn't claiming jobseekers and that someone had accidentally put it down as a request from myself to cancel my housing benefit. I wrote a new statement while I was there explaining that I was caring for my daughter full time and supporting myself through gambling. i referred them back to an appeal from the previous year where i had contested their decision to count all bank credits from gambling as income. The outcome of the appeal was that they were to be considered as capital and so my housing benefit entitlement was unaffected. I didn't fill out a new claim form though so might just had been a request for reconsideration.