Spelthorne Borough Council

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Ashford, Laleham, Shepperton, Staines, Stanwell & Sunbury

Housing Benefit - Backdating benefit

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Housing Benefit - Backdating benefit | Local Housing Allowance (LHA) - Rates for Spelthorne | Local Housing Allowance (LHA) changes from April 2011


Under the Housing Benefit/Council Tax Benefit regulations, local authorities are unable to backdate benefit prior to the effective date of the claim, ie. the Monday following the date the claim was received by the Council or the date income support started. This applies to all claims.

In certain cases however a claim can be backdated but the claimant must show continuous “good cause” for the reason the claim was late and this is defined as follows:

“ - some fact which, having regard to all the circumstances (including the claimant’s state of health and the information which he had received and that which he might have obtained) would probably have caused a reasonable person of his age and experience to act (or fail to act) as the claimant did”.

If you wish to make a claim for backdating of benefit you must do so in writing to the Housing Benefits Team Leader at the Council Offices together with your reasons for not claiming at an earlier date.  Backdating is limited to six months for working age claimants and three months for pensioners.

Backdating of benefit cannot be considered if a period of 52 weeks has passed prior to the claim for backdating being made.

It is expected that people will take reasonable measures to find out if benefits are due to them. For example, the Citizens Advice Bureau offers help and advice, as does the local authority itself.
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