What if I disagree with a decision?
If you disagree with a decision we have made on your claim, the following options are available to you (there are different rules if you are a landlord):
Written statement of reasons
If you are a person affected, you may request a statement of reasons about anything that was not explained in the Housing Benefit decision notice. A request for a written statement of reasons must be made in writing.
You can email your request to Benefit Services.
If you are unable to email you can post your request to:
Benefits Services
Civic Centre
Southampton
SO14 7LY
Reconsideration or appeal
If you don’t agree with a decision that has been made on your Housing Benefit claim you have the right to appeal. Any appeal should be made in writing and sent to us. The appeal should be made within one calendar month of the date of our decision about your claim.
You can email your request to Benefit Services.
If you are unable to email you can post your appeal to:
Benefits Services
Civic Centre
Southampton
SO14 7LY
What happens when I appeal?
When your appeal is received, we’ll check to make sure it is correct, if there are any changes to be made these will be carried out and a new notification will be sent to you. You then have a new right to appeal.
If the decision is found to be correct your appeal will be sent to an Independent Tribunal and you will be sent a letter to confirm this. A copy of the papers sent to the Tribunal Service will also be sent to you.
The Tribunal Service will then contact you directly with a date for the hearing which you should attend. If you have any queries concerning your appeal hearing you can contact the Tribunal Service direct - their contact details will be included in their letter.
Landlords and the right of appeal
If you are a landlord, you only have certain rights to appeal against your tenants Housing Benefit, you cannot appeal about the amount of Housing Benefit entitlement.
You can appeal if we decide not to pay Housing Benefit entitlement directly to you and you can also appeal if we have asked you to pay back an overpayment of your tenant's Housing Benefit entitlement.
See also
