What is a decision? (again)

I asked a client to request a Mandatory Reconsideration about a decision that she had a Bedroom tax deduction.  The answer received was that she was out of time to ask for a MR, as the decision was made in March 2018.  But surely a decision is made every month, and she wasn’t out of time to ask for a MR of the previous 13 decisions?  I can’t see the process in any other way.

The textbook answer is: not necessarily.  Section 159D of the Administration Act allows UC to be adjusted for various routine reasons without a decision.  See also Reg 41 of the Decisions and Appeals Regs.

If the rate of benefit is unchanged from the previous month, the textbook answer is that no decision as such is made at all - the “outcome” is no different from before.

So there will only be a new decision with new MR/appeal rights if something really important changes, or if the claimant requests a decision following an RTI change under reg 41.

What complicates it is the issuing of a new payment statement including fresh MR/appeal rights: is it possible to generate fresh appeal rights that ought not to exist simply by saying they do?