Local authority refusal to accept a claim for housing benefit because tenant placed in temporary accommodation by a different local authority

Use this template if your client:

• is homeless and has been placed in temporary accommodation by a local authority, outside that local authority’s area
• has made a claim for housing benefit to the local authority in which they are living, and their application has not been decided within 14 days or they have been told they are not eligible to make a claim and in either case, no decision has been received

This letter assumes

(so can be changed)

• Your client has asked the local authority to make payment on account.
• Your client’s temporary accommodation is with a private landlord.

When not to use

Do not use this template if:

• Your client has received  a decision refusing their claim, in which case, they should appeal. See instead Request for an appeal to be dealt with urgently

The main legal arguments in this template are:

• Where a homeless applicant is owed a duty to provide accommodation under s.193(1) of the Housing Act 1996 as amended, until that duty is discharged, they must be provided with 'temporary accommodation'.
• By virtue of the Universal Credit Regulations 2013, Schedule 1, para 3B(3), a person who is liable to pay rent for temporary accommodation is not eligible for universal credit housing costs. That person should claim housing benefit.
• Under s.134 of the Social Security Administration Act 1992, where temporary accommodation is provided by a housing authority, that housing authority is to fund and administer the housing benefit. Where temporary accommodation is provided by another organisation, such as a private landlord or private registered provider of social housing, the local authority in whose catchment area the temporary accommodation is located is to fund and administer the housing benefit.
• Under regulation 89 of the Housing Benefit Regulations 2006, the relevant authority must make a decision on the claim within 14 days or as soon as reasonably practicable thereafter.
• Under regulation 93 of the same Regulations, there is a duty for local authorities to make payments of rent allowance where, for a reason out of the claimant’s control, the local authority is unable to make a determination within 14 days of the claim being made

The grounds of review are:

• Unlawful refusal to accept a claim or failure to make a decision within a reasonable time.
• Unlawful failure not to make a payment on account of a rent allowance.
• Unlawful Interference with Article 8 and Protocol 1 Article 1 ECHR.

Information about your client

• name
• address
• date of birth
• relevant characteristics (for example, being a lone parent, a vulnerable individual)

Other information

• the relevant local authority
• the circumstances surrounding the client’s homelessness case – are they owed a s.193 duty, their bidding number and account, if a final offer of accommodation was made, whether the duty was discharged
• the date on which the client claimed housing benefit for the property and the details of the claim
• details of your client's efforts to resolve the issue, details of contact with the Housing Benefit Authority, details of why housing benefit was not awarded
• the impact of this decision on the client – have they suffered distress, risked eviction, or has the landlord taken steps towards eviction?
• what evidence the client has provided to determine their entitlement to housing benefit, the date on which this was provided, and any contact the client may have had with the Housing Benefit Authority about any further information required
• how the failure to process the housing benefit application and failure to award it has placed the client’s home at risk

We've created this guide to help you successfully use our judicial review pre-action letter templates: Guide to using CPAG's judicial review pre-action letter templates

Once you've finished your letter, please email it to us at: [email protected] before you send it to the lawyers acting for DWP/HMRC/your local authority. We'll try to reply as quickly as possible and will do so within 7 days.