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Dispute a Housing Benefit or Council Tax Support decision

Dispute a Housing Benefit or Council Tax Support decision

If you disagree with our Housing Benefit or Council Tax Support claim decision, you can:

  • ask us for more information about the decision
  • ask us to look at the decision again.

If you still think the decision is wrong after we have looked at it, you can appeal.

Asking us for more information

You first need to ask us for an explanation of our decision. This is known as a Statement of Reasons request. 

To do this, email us at benefits@dacorum.gov.uk. 

You must do this within one month from the date we made the decision. We aim to provide you with a Statement of Reasons within two weeks of receiving your request.

A Statement of Reasons provides a detailed breakdown of the decision, including information about how the calculation was made.

Asking us to look at the decision again

You can ask us to look at our claim decision again. This is known as a request for a reconsideration.

To do this, email us at benefits@dacorum.gov.uk.

To make a request, you must be a "person affected by the decision". This is usually:

  • the person who made the Housing Benefit claim (the claimant),
  • the person liable for Council Tax
  • the landlord (if the appeal is about a payment or overpayment).

You must make the request within:

  • one month from the date we made a Housing Support decision
  • two months from the date we made a Council Tax Support decision.

We aim to provide you with a reconsideration decision within two weeks of receiving your request.

When we reconsider a decision, we will check that all details of the claim are correct.

If we find something wrong

We will correct it. We will let you know in writing what we've changed and how this affects your claim. This is called a revision.

If we find that our decision was correct

We will write to you with an explanation of why the decision is correct, including any relevant legislation.

Appealing a decision

If you still think that our decision was wrong, you can appeal via an independent tribunal.

Housing Benefit appeals are handled by the First-tier Tribunal (Social Security and Child Support).

Council Tax Support appeals are handled by the Valuation Tribunal Service.

How to appeal

Expand all

  • Housing Benefit appeals

    Who can appeal

    To appeal against a Housing Benefit decision, you must be a "person affected by the decision". This is usually:

    • the person who made the claim (the claimant), or
    • the landlord (if the appeal is about a payment or overpayment).

    How long you have to make an appeal

    You must submit your appeal within one month of the decision date. You can still appeal against a decision up to 13 months from the decision date. However, you will need to provide good reasons for submitting a late appeal.

    Submit an appeal

    Your appeal must be made in writing (email or letter) and include:

    • the date of the decision you're appealing
    • your reasons for disagreeing with the decision

    Email: benefits@dacorum.gov.uk
    Post: Benefits, The Forum, Marlowes, Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, HP1 1DN

    The appeals process

    Once we receive your appeal, we will send our evidence and details of the relevant legislation to the Tribunal Service. We will also send you a copy. We aim to do this within four weeks of receiving your appeal.

    The Tribunal Service will then schedule a hearing. A judge will decide most appeals without needing to speak to you. However, some hearings are still held in front of a judge. In-person hearings can be held:

    • at a Tribunal Centre
    • by video call, or
    • by telephone.

    Once we have sent our evidence to the Tribunal, appeals can take around six months to be heard. The time it takes is beyond our control.

  • Council Tax Support appeals

    Who can appeal

    To appeal a Council Tax Support decision, you must be the person who is liable for the Council Tax.

    You can only appeal if we have reconsidered the decision first.

    How long you have to appeal

    If we have reconsidered our decision and upheld it, you have two months to appeal.

    Submit an appeal

    You must appeal directly through the Valuation Tribunal Service.

    Appeal process

    Once the Valuation Tribunal Service receives your appeal, it will send you instructions on what to do next. You will have four weeks to prepare any evidence that the Tribunal needs to make a decision.

    A hearing date will then be set by the Valuation Tribunal Service. It will try to give you at least six weeks' notice.

    Hearings are held by video call. You will not have to attend in person.

    Appeals can take around nine months to be heard. The time it takes is beyond our control.

Page Last Updated: Thursday, 21 November 2024 at 11:20 AM