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The basis for geographical jurisdiction for HB claims

KRC
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London Borough of Redbridge Legal Services

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It is accepted practice that,  subject to one exception,  a applicant for housing benefit must apply to the local authority for the area where the property,  for which s/he has a rental liability,  is situated.    The exception is where a local authority places a homelessness applicant in temporary accommodation in the area of a second local authority,    in which case the first local authority remains the appropriate authority to which to apply for housing benefit.

Does anyone know the legal basis for this practice,  and for the exception to it? 

KRC

Gareth Morgan
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CEO, Ferret, Cardiff

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Social Security Administration Act 1992 has

“Arrangements for housing benefit
134.—...
(1B) In any other case housing benefit shall take the form of a rent allowance funded and administered by the local authority for the area in which the dwelling is situated or by such other local authority as is specified by an order made by the Secretary of State.]


There are plenty of specific references to Housing Benefit for refugees and people from abroad, e.g.

2.—(1) A claim for housing benefit for the relevant period may be made to the relevant authority for the area in which the dwelling which the claimant occupied as his home was situate and in respect of which he was liable to make payments.

HB Anorak
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Benefits consultant/trainer - hbanorak.co.uk, East London

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Out of borough homeless placements are especially tricky.  As Gareth says, s134 of the Administration Act is the place to start.  It provides for two kinds of HB:

- a rebate where the claimant is liable to make payments to a Council with HB functions [subs (1A)]
- an allowance in any other case [subs (1B)]

A rebate is always the responsibility of the Council to whom rent/licence charges are payable, so a homeless person placed out of borough will claim HB from the Council who placed them if the accommodation is provided directly by that Council with charges payable to the Council.

A rent allowance is the responsibility of the Council in whose area the dwelling is situated, although as Gareth says circumstances may be prescribed in which a different authority is responsible.  Homeless placements are often arranged through a Housing Association intermediary (often referred to as HALS).  Strictly speaking, the HB claim in such cases should be dealt with by the Council where the dwelling is situated, so an out-of-borough HALS placement would attract rent allowance from the receiving authority, in whose eyes it will be a vanilla housing association claim and nothing to do with homelessness.  I am not aware of any Order under s134(1B) specifying that the placing authority should handle the HB claim in a HALS case.  However, local authorities may agree among themselves that they will carry out one another’s HB functions: see s134(5).  It is usual for the placing authority to deal with HB for an out-of-borough HALS case, whether by conscious s134(5) agreement or otherwise.  DWP has a strong preference that they should arrange things this way because the HB is then subject to homeless subsidy limits, which it would not be in the case of a vanilla HA claim.