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Married couple claiming CTC but living in 2 properties. How are they affected by the benefit cap?

17 August 2018, 05:02 pm

Tom B (WRAMAS)
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WRAMAS - Bristol City Council

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Hi all,

Scratching my head on a Friday afternoon and grateful for any thoughts…

Couple with 3 dependent children of their own + looking after 3 other children.
Receiving CB & CTC for all 6 children.
They have taken on 2 separate properties. They arranged this themselves with friends - it was not created to discharge a homelessness duty.
They are married and plan to return to living under the same roof, so have a joint CTC claim but have made 2 separate HB claims.
Some p/t work so no IS/JSA/ESA but not enough work to qualify for WTC. Not in UC area.

How will the income be treated for the purposes of HB? Presumably this could be apportioned 50/50? If so, I’m unclear about how the benefit cap should apply. Reading HB regulation 75C, I’m concerned that it is their joint entitlement to CTC that will be used to calculate the cap in relation to both HB claims. Has anyone come across a similar scenario or think differently?

19 August 2018, 05:02 pm #1

Stainsby
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Welfare rights adviser - Plumstead Community Law Centre

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I dont think this is a case where two claims could be made.

I know Reg 7(6)(c) refers to “the case where, because of the number of persons referred to in paragraph (1), they have been housed by a housing authority in two separate dwellings;” but a “dwelling” is defined in S137 of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992 as:

“any residential accommodation, whether or not consisting of the whole or part of a building and whether or not comprising separate and self-contained premises”

It is arguable in this case that the accommodation amounts to a single dwelling despite the fact that it is situated in more than one property.

Judge Jacobs found this to be the case in R(H) 5/09 (London Borough of Hackney v GA [2008] UKUT 26 (AAC))

If GA is followed, the benefit cap would be applied in the usual way once HB is calculated on the basis of an aggregated eligible rent, and on the basis of a single claim made by whichever member of the couple choses to make the claim

There will be a strong argument for a DHP lasting for however long these circumstances continue

[ Edited: 19 Aug 2018 at 05:05 pm by Stainsby ]

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20 August 2018, 04:30 pm #2

Tom B (WRAMAS)
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WRAMAS - Bristol City Council

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Thanks very much Stainsby.

A case of not seeing the wood for the trees on a Friday afternoon.

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