HOUSING BENEFIT: COMMON REPAIRS DISALLOWED

HillStreetBlues

The latter 3 all should be allowed. The council needs to tell you why they have disallowed. (otherwise it's just guesswork)
You should get in touch with the HA as get them to breakdown the latter three costs. (To me seem high)

Newcad

As already said £600 plus times 8 appartments is not chicken feed and can hardly be described as "minor" repairs. It sounds more likely that substantial works are planned.

I would think rhe council suspect something more major is being charged for, something such as building maintenace fhat should be paid for by the owner, not be paid for from the benefits purse?

PS  Buildings Insurance would also not normally be covered by benefits. (Although could be in certain cases). Benefits are not there to pay either your or your factors insurance costs. (Otherwise we would all be getting free isurance paid for by benefits).

HillStreetBlues

Newcad said:

As already said £600 plus times 8 appartments is not chicken feed and can hardly be described as "minor" repairs. It sounds more likely that substantial works are planned.

I would think rhe council suspect something more major is being charged for, something such as building maintenace fhat should be paid for by the owner, not be paid for from the benefits purse?

PS  Buildings Insurance would also not normally be covered by benefits. (Although could be in certain cases). Benefits are not there to pay either your or your factors insurance costs. (Otherwise we would all be getting free isurance paid for by benefits).

With HB then building insurance is allowed if part of the SC. It's a bit less clear with UC.

Newcad

Yes it's far from clear, it may be inculded if you have to pay it or you'd be evicted. That usually applies more in Private rentals than Social rentals.

Basically any kind of insurance is just another household bill (or business bill for a landlord) and not rent. Your other benefits are for covering household bills not HB/UC-HE.

It's a bit like water charges, many social tenants pay them as part of the rent/sc - but they are utility bills so are not included in HB/HE.

As said above the buildings insurance for a block is a part of a landlords business expenses, it's their building after all.

If they want to pass that expense on to their tenants then it should be in the rent itself and not as a seperate service charge - that makes no difference for a private rental, the LHA cap applies either way. - but for social landlord trying to do it the other way and make their buildings insurance a tenants service charge is a pretty obvious attempt by the social landlord to avoid the caps on social rent rises.

There again it does appear to be the £600 plus each flat for "Minor" repairs that is the 'Major' issue with Glasgow council here.

HillStreetBlues

Newcad said:

As said above the buildings insurance for a block is a part of a landlords business expenses, it's their building after all.

If they want to pass that expense on to their tenants then it should be in the rent itself and not as a seperate service charge - that makes no difference for a private rental, the LHA cap applies either way. - but for social landlord trying to do it the other way and make their buildings insurance a tenants service charge is a pretty obvious attempt by the social landlord to avoid the caps on social rent rises.

There again it does appear to be the £600 plus each flat for "Minor" repairs that is the 'Major' issue with Glasgow council here.

Most leasehold don't work like that, the leasehold is responsible for actual building while they have the lease. This includes insurance, repairs, cleaning communal areas etc. That's why there was so much trouble with cladding. Some leaseholders had to pay for it to be installed, then then when found unsuitable removed. Some have been resolved, some of the lease are basically worthless.
With UC there is a difference on if or not building insurance can be claimed, I believe private rentals it can, council/HA can't.
With HB there isn't that issue, as building insurance isn't mentioned in "Ineligible service charges"  the council have accepted the building is an allowable part of the SC.

The later three are all allowable, but have to be " reasonable"  but even if the council don't think they are reasonable, it can't simply disallow them. What the council must do is pay what they think is reasonable. If the OP doesn't agree with the council view of "reasonable" then the OP can challenge it.