Responsibility for claimants

Rod4mm

When a claim for income support is set up and you are in receipt of Housing and Council tax benefits,set up by the person at the benefits office,when you are later signed off, is it your responsibility to contact the Housing and Council Tax departments to personally tell them you no longer require these benefits to be paid.(As I did not instegate them in the begining am I legally responsible for stopping them).

healy

Yes it is your responsibility to inform any office that you are no longer entitled to receive benefits.

katiejones

my hubby starts work on monday and the jobcentre said we are still entitled to 4 weeks of HB and CTB, so when would it be best to tell the council we need to start paying ourselves. Also will they send us a rent card because we wish to pay both weekly?

Conor_3

Depends on who you're renting off as to whether you get a rent card or not. If its the council, you may need to apply for one.

Rod4mm

Thanks for help, I now realise why I am being pursued for arrears.I vacated the council property and handed in the keys to council flat with a letter explaining I was leaving,however I did not inform the Housing benefit and Council Tax benefits departments as I assumed everything would be stopped (big mistake).Apparently one department of the council continued to pay the other departments my benefits even though I was no longer living there.Now 4 years later they have sent me a bill for the overpayment.It amounts to a lot of money!I have tried Citizens Advice Bureau who have explained my case to the council,but they say I must pay.Any ideas?

dmg24

How much have you been overpaid by?

If they can prove the overpayment, then you will need to make an arrangement to pay (in instalments if necessary).

Did CAB agree that you are liable?

Rod4mm

About £1500, I guess I will just have to pay off a little a week,it just seems so daft that a council sent money from one department to another,yet I am the one who has the debt.

dmg24

Rod4mm wrote: »

About £1500, I guess I will just have to pay off a little a week,it just seems so daft that a council sent money from one department to another,yet I am the one who has the debt.

Have you contacted the housing office? It may be possible that they have put the monies into a holding account. Alternatively, they may have an overpayment noted on your account, which may (or may not) be repayable.

The housing and benefits depts at the council are completely separate. It is your responsibility to speak to the different depts, not for them to sort it between themselves.