Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit (General) Amendment Regulations 2000
| Jurisdiction | UK Non-devolved |
| Citation | SI 2000/4 |
2000 No. 4
SOCIAL SECURITY
The Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit (General) Amendment Regulations 2000
Made 6th January 2000
Laid before Parliament 7th January 2000
Coming into force in accordance with regulation 1(1)
The Secretary of State for Social Security in exercise of powers conferred upon him by sections 1(1C)(c), 5(1)(d), 126A, 189(3) and (5) and 191 of the Social Security Administration Act 19921, sections 123(1)(d), 130(4), 137(1) and 175(3) and (4) of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 19922, section 122(3) of the Housing Act 19963and section 34(4) and (5) of the Social Security Act 19984, after agreement by the Social Security Advisory Committe that proposals in respect of these Regulations should not be referred to it5and after consultation with organisations appearing to him to be representative of the authorities concerned6, hereby makes the following Regulations:
Citation, commencement and interpretation
1.—(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit (General) Amendment Regulations 2000 and shall come into force–
(a)
(a) for the purposes of this regulation and regulations 2 to 4 and 11 on 3rd February 2000;
(b)
(b) for the purposes of regulation 5–
(i) in any case where rent is payable at intervals of a whole number of weeks, on 3rd April 2000; and
(ii) in any other case, on 1st April 2000;
(c)
(c) for the purposes of regulation 6 to 10 on 3rd April 2000; and
(d)
(d) for the purposes of regulation 12 on 1st April 2000.
(2) In these Regulations–
“the Housing Benefit Regulations” means the Housing Benefit (General) Regulations 19877;
“the Council Tax Benefit Regulations” means the Council Tax Benefit (General) Regulations 19928.
Amendment of the Housing Benefit (Information from Landlords and Agents) Regulations 1997
2. For regulation 5 of the Housing Benefit (Information from Landlords and Agents) Regulations 19979there shall be substituted the following regulation–
“5.—(1) Subject to paragraph (2) the relevant information shall be supplied–
(a)
(a) in typewritten or printed form; or
(b)
(b) with the written agreement of the requirer, in electronic or handwritten form,
within a period of 4 weeks commencing on the date on which the notice was sent or given.
(2) Where–
(a)
(a) within a period of 4 weeks commencing on the date on which the notice was sent or given, the supplier requests that the time for supply of the relevant information be extended; and
(b)
(b) the requirer provides written agreement to that request,
the time for supply of the relevant information shall be extended to a period of 8 weeks commencing on the date on which the notice was sent or given.”.
Amendment of regulation 2 of the Housing Benefit Regulations
3. In regulation 2 of the Housing Benefit Regulations (interpretation) in the appropriate place there shall be inserted the following definition–
““the Rent Officers Order” means the Rent Officers (Housing Benefit Functions) Order 199710or, as the case may be, the Rent Officers (Housing Benefit Functions) (Scotland) Order 199711”.
Amendment of regulation 2B of the Housing Benefit Regulations
4. In regulation 2B of the Housing Benefit Regulations (cases in which section 1(1A) of the Administration Act is disapplied12for the words after “shall not apply” to the end of that regulation there shall be substituted the words–
“–
(a) to a claim for housing benefit where the person making the claim, or in respect of whom the claim is made, is liable to make payments in respect of a dwelling which is a hostel; or
(b) to any child or young person in respect of whom housing benefit is claimed.”.
Amendment of regulation 11 of the Housing Benefit Regulations
5. In regulation 11 of the Housing Benefit Regulations (maximum rent)–
(a) in paragraphs (2), (4), (5), (5C), (5D) and (6A) for the words “relevant rent” wherever they appear there shall be substituted the words “claim-related rent”;
(b) in paragraph (8A)–
(i) sub-paragraphs (a) and (c) shall be omitted; and
(ii) the words “or charges” shall be omitted;
(c) in paragraph (8B) the words “for fuel or” shall be omitted;
(d) in paragraph (8C)–
(i) sub-paragraph (b) shall be omitted; and
(ii) in sub-paragraph (c) the words “for fuel and a deduction” shall be omitted; and
(e) in paragraph (13)–
(i) the definitions “deduction for fuel”, “property-specific rent”, “ relevant rent”, “size-related rent” and “the Rent Officers Order ” shall be omitted; and
(ii) the following definition shall be inserted in the appropriate place–
““claim-related rent” means the rent notified by the rent officer under paragraph 9(1) of Schedule 1 to the Rent Officers Order;”.
Amendment of regulation 12A of the Housing Benefit Regulations
6. In regulation 12A of the Housing Benefit Regulations (requirement to refer to rent officers13–
(a) in paragraph (1A)14–
(i) for the words “the following information in respect of the payments which that claimant is liable to make in respect of the dwelling which he occupies as his home” there shall be substituted the words “the total amount of those payments referred to in regulation 10(1) (rent) which that claimant is liable to make in respect of the dwelling which he occupies as his home and shall provide the following information in respect of those payments ”; and
(ii) in sub-paragraph (a) after the words “environmental services” there shall be inserted the words “or charges in respect of meals or fuel which are ineligible by virtue of paragraph 1A and Part II of Schedule 1 (ineligible service charges)”;
(b) in paragraph (2) for the words “claim or notification” wherever they appear there shall be substituted the words “claim, notification or request ”;
(c) after paragraph (7) there shall be inserted the following paragraph–
“7A Where the appropriate authority has identified charges specified in paragraph (1ZA)15it shall–
(a) deduct those charges from the total amount of those payments which, in accordance with paragraph (1A), it has stated that the claimant is liable to make in respect of the dwelling which he occupies as his home; and
(b) notify that total so reduced to the rent officer in its application under paragraph (1) for his use in making determinations under Schedule 1 (determinations) to the Rent Officers Order.”; and
(d) in paragraph (8) the definition of “determination” shall be omitted.
Addition of regulations 12B to 12D to the Housing Benefit Regulations
7. After regulation 12A of the Housing Benefit Regulations at the end of Part III there shall be inserted the following regulations–
“Applications to the rent officer for redeterminations
12B.—(1) Subject to paragraph (2) and regulation 12C, where an appropriate authority has obtained from a rent officer either or both of the following–
(a)
(a) a determination on a reference made under regulation 12A (requirement to refer to rent officers);
(b)
(b) a redetermination on a reference made under regulation 79(4A) (review of determinations),
the authority may apply to the rent officer for a redetermination of any determination or redetermination he has made which has effect at the date of the application.
(2) No application shall be made for a further...
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