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Bedroom Tax- Pre 1996 claims- Arrears of Housing Beneft should now be due to perhaps 40,000 households. Transitional protection should have applied, meaning that the bedroom tax was wrongly implemented for some households. Those affected(HB U1/2014) are where-
● they have been continuously entitled to HB since at least 1 January 1996 and occupied the same dwelling since
that date.
except for- any period where a fre, flood, explosion or natural catastrophe has rendered the property uninhabitable. Breaks in entitlement are OK of 'no more than 4 weeks or...52 weeks if the claimant or their partner is a welfare to work benefciary'.
Claimants should contact their local authority now if they may be in this position.

However, the government is acting now to change the law so that these same households will be caught by the bedroom tax in the near future.

DiscretionaryHousingAllowanceAllocationfor2014/2015is£165m.That's- originalbaseline-£20m,local housing allowance reforms-£40m, bedroom tax-£60m and beneft cap-45m.

Benefit Cap Rates Don't Change for Childless Couples There's been some confusion over whether the Beneft Cap rate for childless couples was reducing in 2014/15 from £2167monthly (£500 weekly) to £1517 monthly (£350 weekly). Steve Webb has apologised for misleading the House of Commons and explained the rates will remain as per 2013/2014.

Click here for our new Beneft Updater Course that gives you an opportunity to keep up to date and discuss all these issues.

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