What do I need to backdate 10 years of Council Tax benefit?

Hi AVB

I agree with your colleague “you are mad” - I am afraid the time limit on backdating is limited to 6 months.  You need more information from your client about what he was told, by whom and when in order to consider a complaint to the local authority under their complaints policy.  You will need to then consider if there is sufficient evidence to pursue the matter to the Local Government Ombudsman as there may be compensation to cover the loss of benefit and the trouble taken to take the complaint to the Ombudsman if there was maladministration by the local authority.

Hope this helps.

In the technical sense, 6 months is without doubt the maximum for backdating.  However, there may be another way of approaching this which isn’t as far fetched as it may seem at first glance…..

Based on the info given, it seems your client made a reasonably unambigous enquiry to claim CTB.  When was this enquiry made?  Was there more than one enquiry?  If the enquiry was made on or after 10th November 2005, there is surely an argument to be made that this constituted an “intention” to claim.  In such circumstances, the LA is required to issue an appropriate claim form and the clmt has one month (or such longer period if reasonable) from the date the form is issued.  If the form has never been issued, the time limit is still running which means a form can be issue NOW and, so long as returned in one month, the claim takes effect from the date of the enquiry (i.e. “intention”).

The LA will probably laugh at this but a Tribunal may not find it so funny if, in broad terms, the clmt is credible.

For the period to 5th March 2006, the relevant legislation is CTBR 62(5)(ddd) (1992 flavour of the regs) and for the period from 6th March 2006 it is CTBR 69(5)(d)   (2006 flavour) - note the change in wording from Oct 2008.

Any request should avoid mentioning backdating; focus expressly on the intention provisions and the LA’s failure to issue a claim form and the resultant open ended time limit until the LA complies with the law.

For any period not covered by CTB, I agree with the previous poster that compensation request is an option to the extent of the losses caused to your client by being misled by the LA.

hi AVB

another route you might want to take is to see if the client’s CTB was properly terminated when it stopped. the council can’t just ‘stop’ benefit if, for example, the claimant failed to return a periodic review form, but have to follow the procedures for suspending and terminating the award for failure to provide information under the decisions and appeals regulations.  if you find that these procedures weren’t followed you can ask for an any time revision of the decision to terminate on the grounds of official error. there’s no appeal if they refuse to change the decision but, if it’s really clear they were wrong, they might change their mind or you could threaten judicial review proceedings.

another thing is that the council tax department can get the debt back off the bailiffs if they want - there’s nothing statutary to stop them - it may be that you need to escalate the matter within the council emphasising the claimant’s v poor health and misadvice he’s had in the past.

in terms of DLA - unfortunately there is no backdating of DLA so if stopped because client failed to fill in and return renewal form not much you can do - apart from get another claim in asap.

cheers ros

Hi and very big thank you to all of you.
Because of the client mental health he can not recall when he made the call and enquire about the WTC. I am planning to meet his ex wife / who still lives at his flat/ and ask her about it, he can remember that the ex wife was pregnant at the time so I am thinking this should have been around 2006 even. I am still waiting for a reply regarding the information I requested regarding his CTB from 2002 / where he believes they stopped his claim/.
I will keep you all updated about how I get on with the things. I certanly will make some further phone calls, emails regarding the bailifs as I dont think this is helping at the moment. Client is clearly unwell and because of family matters he is getting fits every day. I will try my best, I have never tried a case like this but it is worth trying and proving that I am “mad” :) Thank you once again

Kevin D - 11 January 2012 12:40 PM

In the technical sense, 6 months is without doubt the maximum for backdating.  However, there may be another way of approaching this which isn’t as far fetched as it may seem at first glance…..

Based on the info given, it seems your client made a reasonably unambigous enquiry to claim CTB.  When was this enquiry made?  Was there more than one enquiry?  If the enquiry was made on or after 10th November 2005, there is surely an argument to be made that this constituted an “intention” to claim.  In such circumstances, the LA is required to issue an appropriate claim form and the clmt has one month (or such longer period if reasonable) from the date the form is issued.  If the form has never been issued, the time limit is still running which means a form can be issue NOW and, so long as returned in one month, the claim takes effect from the date of the enquiry (i.e. “intention”).

The LA will probably laugh at this but a Tribunal may not find it so funny if, in broad terms, the clmt is credible.

For the period to 5th March 2006, the relevant legislation is CTBR 62(5)(ddd) (1992 flavour of the regs) and for the period from 6th March 2006 it is CTBR 69(5)(d)   (2006 flavour) - note the change in wording from Oct 2008.

Any request should avoid mentioning backdating; focus expressly on the intention provisions and the LA’s failure to issue a claim form and the resultant open ended time limit until the LA complies with the law.

For any period not covered by CTB, I agree with the previous poster that compensation request is an option to the extent of the losses caused to your client by being misled by the LA.

If the call was made prior to 2005 is there any legislation around the matter, and what will happen if the CTB department sayd that they do not have any iformation on the system about his call?
Thank you

AVB - 11 January 2012 03:23 PM

If the call was made prior to 2005 is there any legislation around the matter, and what will happen if the CTB department sayd that they do not have any iformation on the system about his call?

The “intention” legislation only came in from 10th November 2005 - hence the reference to that date in my post.  As for the LA disputing a call was made, there are a couple of CDs where Cmmrs made the point that the lack of records relating to contact didn’t mean such contact didn’t occur - see for example CH/4065/2001.

I’d also agree with Ros’ suggestion.  If the CTB matter gets to the appeal stage but the LA continues to pursue CTAX monies, try asking the FtT to direct the LA (and any bailiffs) to desist from such action until the appeal is decided - cite CH/1757/2009 and CH/0476/2009 in support of such a request.

WOW you are amazing thank you so much. I will keep you updated. Thanks

Are there any utility arrears - gas, electricity, water? Any scope to apply to a charity for help to clear the debt?

[When I log in, it comes up that I am Phil Cole.  no idea why that is.  I am Jane Smith. Inverclyde Council.  Anyway ...].

1.  Is it really a late appeal?  If the decision was not properly notified then the time limit for appealing has not started to run.  Might the argument set out below help you make an in-time appeal?

I realise that this looks like a late appeal but I believe that it is not and that my appeal can be admitted as timeous.  This is because the decision has not until now been notified to me in sufficient detail to enable me to work out what it is about. 
In support of this I refer you to Regina v. Secretary of State for the Home Department and another (Respondents) ex parte Anufrijeva (FC) (Appellant)  [2003] UKHL 36 -
“26. The arguments for the Home Secretary ignore fundamental principles of our law. Notice of a decision is required before it can have the character of a determination with legal effect because the individual concerned must be in a position to challenge the decision in the courts if he or she wishes to do so. This is not a technical rule. It is simply an application of the right of access to justice. That is a fundamental and constitutional principle of our legal system: Raymond v Honey [1983] 1 AC 1, 10G per Lord Wilberforce; R v Secretary of State for the Home Department, Ex p Leech, [1994] QB 198, 209D; R v Secretary of State for the Home Department, Ex p Simms [2000] 2 AC 115”.
I have not so far been sent a copy the decision, or its terms, or the benefit awards and decisions it changes”.

With thanks to Chris Orr for sharing his wisdom on Anufrijeva.  He recently left Glasgow City Council, will be sorely missed by all, not least future appellants.

2.  This case might be of some help with the issue raised by the earlier poster about the claim , depending on what’s gone before -  http://www.disabilityalliance.org/novitskaya.htm .

Good luck.  And I don’t think it’s mad to try to help someone who’s in a mess.

Hi unfortanately my client made the enquire over the phone, he never received an application pack as he was told he would not be eligible for CTB because he was homeowner. Can I still use the above post and the lovely template?
Thank you so much for your support I just feel that as a professional I should fight the corner of my clients and as I can see how my client is and what state he is at I cant help but try to help:) I think with all the help from this forum I should be able to win the case, but if it goes much further he cant get legal aid / being home owner/ and I dont know whether I will be able to follow.
Thank you once again

It doesn’t matter if the enquiry was made over the phone; the law says an intention can be expressed by “any means”.  It will simply be a matter of your client’s credibility.  All of the above postings are still valid in the context within which they are expressed.

Hello would like to update all of you further. Spoke with the clients ex-wife who said that they were not entitled as they had income I did question that further but she said they have already gone through it provided all info to the council and still no award was made. The client was very quiet and said that he cant remember much / he suffers with temporal lobe epilepsy ex- drug user and ex-alcoholic/ which I do believe is the case. According to the ex-wife they dont want any backdate as they have already tried and ” cant be bothered” to do anything more.

So in summary this case is closed in the essence of the backdate, I cant force them to appeal if they dont want to. I think they are both tyred of it all and with the divorce proceedings on the way I think my client hardly copes.

Thank you all so much for the help I have learnt at least something new.

Regards,
Antonina