Bedroom tax and major adaptations

[deebee]

Good morning.
I moved here six years ago with my son.
Five years ago the staying put team installed a wet room for me.
Ten months ago my son moved out.
I am now being charged bedroom tax but had previously been told that the major adaptations I have had would exempt me.
Can anyone advise please

[TimeLord]

Hello do you receive housing benefit or any benefits or is it a PIP adaption. Some councils will have their own rules to.

[deebee]

Hello do you receive housing benefit or any benefits or is it a PIP adaption. Some councils will have their own rules to.

Yes, I was receiving full housing benefit but they are now deducting spare room subsidy but I had previously been told I would not be charged that due to major adaptations

[TimeLord]

Are you still a recipient of full housing benefit ? And do you qualify as severe having disabilities if so contact your council and appeal the decision. Or citizen's advice.

The bedroom ‘size criteria’ rule, or ‘bedroom tax’ as it is more commonly known, restricts the size of accommodation that universal credit or housing benefit can cover the rental costs for, based on the number of people in your household.

The bedroom tax applies if you are of working age and renting from a local authority, a registered housing association or other registered social landlord.

Working age means anyone between the age of 16 and pension age. You may be affected by the bedroom tax if you are a member of a couple and just one of you has reached pension age; you are not affected if you have both reached pension age.

The bedroom tax applies in Scotland, but the Scottish government has allowed for an extension of discretionary housing payments (DHPs) to cover tenants who would otherwise lose out. You need to apply for a DHP to receive this support. Similar measures apply in Northern Ireland.

[TimeLord]

http://www.disabilityrightsuk.org/di...using-payments

[deebee]

Are you still a recipient of full housing benefit ? And do you qualify as severe having disabilities if so contact your council and appeal the decision. Or citizen's advice.

The bedroom ‘size criteria’ rule, or ‘bedroom tax’ as it is more commonly known, restricts the size of accommodation that universal credit or housing benefit can cover the rental costs for, based on the number of people in your household.

The bedroom tax applies if you are of working age and renting from a local authority, a registered housing association or other registered social landlord.

Working age means anyone between the age of 16 and pension age. You may be affected by the bedroom tax if you are a member of a couple and just one of you has reached pension age; you are not affected if you have both reached pension age.

The bedroom tax applies in Scotland, but the Scottish government has allowed for an extension of discretionary housing payments (DHPs) to cover tenants who would otherwise lose out. You need to apply for a DHP to receive this support. Similar measures apply in Northern Ireland.

No.
They are now deducting for the spare room.
But I should be exempt as I have had major adaptations

[TimeLord]

You will have to contact your council and ask them to look again at the claim to see if they've charged you in error, they do not get everyone's claim right, and will pay any mistakes back they may realise later that they made a mistake. But contact them anyway.

[nukecad]

It's a tricky one because exemption from 'bedroom tax' in Housing benefit, for reasons of 'major adaptations', is not a right - it's down to the individual council.

It isn't automatic, you have to apply for it; and it's more to do with cost considerations to the council than any rights that you have.

The idea of the 'bedroom tax' is to get people to move to smaller properties, thus freeing up the larger properties for those who will use all the bedrooms.

Where the council decides that the major adaptations needed to a smaller property if you moved would be too costly for them then they can instead grant a Discretionary Housing Payment (DHP) to cover/waive the 'bedroom tax' payable and so let you stay in your already adapted property.

This government guidance applies, see: Annex A: Benefit cap and Removal of the Spare Room Subsidy policy
https://www.gov.uk/government/public...manual#annex-b
(My highlighting and underlining)

Support for disabled people living in significantly adapted accommodation

22. For claimants living in specially adapted accommodation, it will sometimes be more cost-effective for them to remain in their current accommodation rather than moving them into smaller accommodation which needs to be adapted. Therefore, the department recommends that LAs identify people who fall into this group and invite an application for a DHP.

23. In addition, LAs should consider DHP awards for claimants living in properties that have been significantly adapted for other household members such as for a disabled child or non-dependant.

24. There is no definition of significantly adapted accommodation. It is up to each LA to decide what constitutes significantly adapted accommodation, based on claimant need and local knowledge.

So what you need to do is apply to the council for a DHP to cover the 'bedroom tax', on the grounds that if you did move to a smaller property then it would have to be adapted again, costing them more money than granting the DHP would cost.

I would suggest that you re-contact the 'Staying put Team' again for help applying for a DHP - after all what you want to do is stay put and that's their job.

[deebee]

It's a tricky one because exemption from 'bedroom tax' in Housing benefit, for reasons of 'major adaptations', is not a right - it's down to the individual council.

It isn't automatic, you have to apply for it; and it's more to do with cost considerations to the council than any rights that you have.

The idea of the 'bedroom tax' is to get people to move to smaller properties, thus freeing up the larger properties for those who will use all the bedrooms.

Where the council decides that the major adaptations needed to a smaller property if you moved would be too costly for them then they can instead grant a Discretionary Housing Payment (DHP) to cover/waive the 'bedroom tax' payable and so let you stay in your already adapted property.

This government guidance applies, see: Annex A: Benefit cap and Removal of the Spare Room Subsidy policy
https://www.gov.uk/government/public...manual#annex-b
(My highlighting and underlining)

So what you need to do is apply to the council for a DHP to cover the 'bedroom tax', on the grounds that if you did move to a smaller property then it would have to be adapted again, costing them more money than granting the DHP would cost.

I would suggest that you re-contact the 'Staying put Team' again for help applying for a DHP - after all what you want to do is stay put and that's their job.

Thanks.
I have already appealed.
Should I instead apply for a discretionary payment?
My council considers anything over 2000 to be major adaptations and my wet room cost 7,400

[nukecad]

It depends how desperate you are getting (rent arrears?).

If it's not desperate then see how the appeal goes, I believe that they are correct by applying the bedroom tax so it will probably go nowhere, but it may just prompt them to look at a DHP themselves.

If they don't budge on the appeal, and say nothing about a DHP then apply for one.

In the meantime I'd definitely be getting in touch with that Staying Put team, as said it's their job to try and make sure you can stay where you are - and afford it.

PS. I don't know what the cost of a wet room would be now but if it was £7,400 then you can bet it's over £10K to fit a new one if you had to move.
£10K + will cover a lot of years DHP payments, and it would be a shame if the £7.4K wetroom they have already shelled out for wasn't being used by someonw who needs it.