We have a number of interesting cases arising whereby our clients are receiving refugee status and want to claim backdated income support for the time they were an asylum seeker. They were however RANS cases under sec 55 of the 1999 Act and therefore received no financial support or accommodation.
The common thought here is that as the client received no support from the Home Office as an asylum seeker they should be entitled to 100% in backdated benefits. Our local benefits agency however seem to think that because the clients were housed and fed by friends or family this itself constitutes a level of support and therefore disbarrs them from claiming backdated income support.
I cannot seem to find any literature or precedents for this issue and was wondering if anyone has heard of examples of cases regarding this. If you do then please let me know. Many Thanks

I'm not aware of any Commissioner decisions dealing with your client's specific situation.

However, from what you've said, the only way for the DWP to refuse any such backdated IS claim, would be on the basis that the claimant's income over that period matched or exceeded their applicable amount.

The fact that family or friends may have housed them would not be relevant to this. Unless they were actually given money by them as well, the physical provision of meals or other "payments in kind" would not be "income".

If any actual "payments" were made to them , then these would seem to fit more into the category of charitable or voluntary payments.

If these were irregular, then any such payment should be treated as capital, and would be unlikely to affect their backdated claim (Reg 48(9) IS Regs).

Even if they were regular, any parts which were intended and used for anything apart from food, ordinary clothing, household fuel, council tax, water charges and rent, would be ignored. If they were intended or used for these, then there would be a disregard of £20 week. (Schedule 9 para 15 IS Regs).