UC with HB for supported accommodation, client paid 4 weekly, double wages in one AP stops HB

Hi everyone - my first post on here!

I have a client on UC with HB for supported accommodation. His UC has stopped because he’s paid 4 weekly and he’s just had two lots of wages in one AP. I know that is correct for UC, if illogical, but the problem is his HB. Council are saying they have to use DWP’s earnings calculation, i.e. assume his 8 weeks of pay was earned over a month (even though it wasn’t), which results in no HB. But he doesn’t earn a lot and a calculation using true average earnings as per HB reg 33 would result in partial HB. Obvs all will resolve next AP but I’m hoping to mitigate some of the HB loss, as he’s currently being told he’s been overpaid HB and will lose a full month’s entitlement.

So the question is, are the council correct to say that the earnings info received from DWP effectively overrides the HB regs? Council are of the opinion that, if RTI info is provided by DWP, they have no choice but to use it. My opinion is there is now no UC award, albeit this is only temporary, so DWP info is irrelevant and they are free to assess income per Reg 33 / W2.50 of housing benefit guidance.

All thoughts welcome!

No, the Council should calculate average earnings the same way they would for anyone else.  If he gets paid the same amount every four weeks, his earnings for HB purposes are 1 payment / 4.  If it varies, they should take an average (2 payments or more if it really fluctuates a lot).  Taking 8 weeks’ regular earnings into account in one month is completely unsupported by anything in the HB Regs.

https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2006/213/regulation/29

They might say that they are preventing a windfall, because in most months the claimant gets a calendar month’s UC plus passported HB based on four weeks’ earnings and the nil UC months are necessary to reset the clock and prevent the windfall accumulating in perpetuity - if HB syncs its earnings assessment with UC, it ensures a fairer outcome over the long term.  Trouble is, there is nothing at all in the HB Regs to support that.

Most CTR schemes require the Council to adopt DWP’s income assessment for someone who has an award of UC, and they could be thinking of that, but even then there is nothing to say that DWP’s income assessment should be used when the claimant is not entitled to UC.

Thanks HBAnorak :)