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Housing and Council Tax Benefits - Overpayments
These occur where benefit is cancelled and money has already been given to you either by way of rent benefit and/or by crediting your council tax account.

Your over-payment should be reduced by any underlying entitlement i.e. benefit for the same period as the overpayment but at a lower amount based on the correct circumstances.  Check your invoice for underlying entitlement.  
If not stated you should query this.

If you have been getting help to pay your rent, an invoice will be sent to you (or your Landlord
if the Council has paid your Landlord).  It is the Council’s decision from whom it recovers the debt.

The invoice must be paid and you will be given the opportunity to pay by instalments if you would experience difficulty in paying a one off amount.

If you have been getting council tax benefit a revised council tax bill will be sent .  You will need to contact the Council Tax section to organise repayment if you cannot pay the revised instalments.

Overpayments are normally recoverable, this means the Council can seek repayment through the Count

Overpayments are normally recoverable, this means the Council can seek repayment through the County Court by way of a Judgement Order if the overpayment is not repaid. If an order is obtained there are extra charges to be made to you.

Issue fee £35
Attachment of Earnings £100
Order to attend court £50
Charging Order £100
Third party debt order £100
Application for substituted service £40

If we recover from your landlord the overpayment will appear as rent arrears on your rent account.

  • if the overpayment was caused by the Local Authority (or Department of Work & Pensions) and the claimant could not reasonably have known that an overpayment was occurring then the overpayment will not be recoverable.
  • you must always read your entitlement letters to check that the details the Council has used in calculating your claim are correct.  You must do this to avoid an overpayment occuring.
Please contact the Overpayment Officer Mrs Clements with any queries you have regarding overpayments on 01784 446400 or write to

Benefit Office,
PO Box 292
Staines
TW18 1UY
or e-mail: benefits@spelthorne.gov.uk

Any appeals must be made in writing to Principal Benefit Officer, Mrs Singer within one calendar month of you being notified of the overpayment.