Overpayments
An overpayment is Benefit that we have paid you, but for which there was no entitlement under the Regulations.
An example would be if a claimant failed to tell the Council that their income had increased, and a when we recalculated their entitlement we had paid too much Benefit.
A fraudulent overpayment may occur when a person has deliberately provided a false statement or document, or has deliberately failed to report a change of circumstances with intending to get or retaining Benefit.
How Does the Council Deal with Overpayments?
The rules about administering Benefit overpayments are contained in the Housing Benefit Regulations and other subsequent legislation. The Council has a duty to fulfil these legal rules, and has a duty to recover overpayments from tenants and landlords.
The Council may also decide to take criminal proceedings for fraudulent overpayments.
Who is Overpayment recoverable from?
An overpayment is recoverable from either the person who caused the overpayment, or the person who received the overpayment.
How do we recover Benefit from the Tenant?
If the tenant is receiving housing benefit, we will recover the overpayment from future benefit payments by a weekly deduction known as a 'claw-back'.
If we pay direct to the landlord, the benefit payment that we issue every 4 weeks will reflect the tenant's reduced entitlement .
The tenant is responsible for paying any rent arrears that occur because of the reduced amount paid to the landlord. If the tenant is not currently receiving housing benefit, we may recover the overpayment from other benefits or issue an invoice.
Recovery of an overpayment will not prejudice any criminal proceedings the Council may take for fraudulent overpayments.
How Do We Recover from the Landlord?
If the Council has decided to recover an overpayment from a landlord it will issue an invoice or take off from other tenants' benefit paid to that landlord. The landlord should not treate these deductions as rent arrears for those tenants, and the landlord must not try to recover the shortfall from them.
Recovery of an overpayment will not prejudice any criminal proceedings the Council may be take for fraudulent overpayments.
Is there a Right of Appeal?
For further information on reviews and Appeals see 'Housing Benefit Reviews and Appeals'.
You can ask for a review of a decision to calculate an overpayment. You should make the request within 1 month of the decision notice.
A landlord can seek a review where we are seeking to recover direct from them. This is where we have issued an invoice for to them, or we are making a deduction from the benefit they receive for one of their tenants to recover an overpayment owed by the landlord for another tenant. Where the landlord personally owes the overpayment, we will tell them in writing of a decision to recover from him. They should make any request for a review within 1 month of the decision notice.
A landlord can write to the Council asking for a written statement of reasons for the recovery of an overpayment from him.
What will happen if an Overpayment is not Repaid?
Where an invoice addressed to a landlord remains unpaid, they do not keep to an agreed arrangement to repay the debt over time, the Council may take action in the County Court.
Important Notes
A landlord can only seek a review where we are seeking to recover from them personally; that is, where we have issued an invoice them, or a deduction is being made from the benefit they receive for one of their tenants to recover an overpayment owed by the landlord.
If a landlord habitually fails to repay overpayments that are recoverable from him, the Council can decide the landlord is not a 'fit and proper person' under Benefit Regulations. We can refuse to make direct benefit payments to that landlord.