Appeals

If you think our decision about your Housing Benefit or Council Tax Reduction claim is wrong you have a number of options.

Please choose whether you want to appeal your Housing Benefit or your Council Tax Reduction from the menu below. The process is slightly different for each.

Housing Benefit and CTR Appeals

Appeals

Housing Benefit Appeals

You must contact us in writing within one month of receiving your decision letter.

What are my options?

If you do not agree with the decision that we have made about your claim for benefit you have three options:

  • Ask us to explain the decision
  • Ask us to look at the decision again (this is called a review or reconsideration)
  • Make an appeal in writing or by email giving the reasons why you disagree.

What must I do?

  • Your appeal or request for a review must be in writing and you must tell us why you think our decision is wrong and provide any supporting evidence.
  • This must be done within one month of receiving your decision notification letter.
  • If we do not get your request in writing within one month, then we may not be able to look at our decision again.

What Can the Council Look at?

What Can We Review

What Can't We Review
The amount of income and capital used in our calculations The Local Housing Allowance for the area you live in
The number of bedrooms you are eligible to claim for The amount the Government says you need to live on
Refusal to backdate your claim
Overpayment of benefits (the amount and the time period)

How do I appeal?

If you would like to appeal a decision we have made about your benefit please write to us. We aim to deal with appeals within 4 weeks of a written request being received.

If you have asked us to review our decision, we will write to you with an explanation of the decision and any changes that we have made. If you still disagree with the decision you still have the right to appeal.

Council Tax Reduction Appeals

You must contact us in writing within one month of receiving your Council Tax Bill.

What are my options?

If you do not agree with the decision that we have made about your claim for Council Tax Reduction you have two options:

  • Ask us to explain the decision
  • Request a reversal of our decision

Can I appeal?

You can appeal if

  • you should be entitled to council tax discount under the local council tax discount scheme
  • the amount of council tax discount to which you are entitled to is wrong

You can find out about our Council Tax Reduction scheme here.

The Council will then look at your claim and tell you the outcome of the reconsideration, outlining the reasons.

What must I do?

  • Your appeal or request for a reversal must be in writing. You must tell us why you think our decision is wrong and provide any supporting evidence.
  • This must be done within one month of receiving your Council Tax bill.
  • If we do not get your request in writing within one month, then we may not be able to look at our decision again.

What Can the Council Look at?

What Can We Review

What Can't We Review
The amount of income and capital used in our calculations The administration of the Council Tax Reduction Scheme
Refusal to backdate your claim
The reduced entitlement to Council Tax Reduction (the amount and time period)

What if I still disagree?

If the decision is not changed in your favor and you still think the decision is wrong, you have the right to appeal to the Valuation Tribunal for England.

This must be within 2 months of the date of the reconsideration. You can contact them on their website at www.valuationtribunal.gov.uk or telephone 0300 123 2035.

You can only appeal against a Council tax reduction decision, not the scheme itself.