Decision details

The Director of Resources and Deputy Chief Executive submitted a report to obtain Committee’s approval to write off Council Tax Benefit (CTB) and Housing Benefit (HB) overpayments and to consider whether to write off the additional Council Tax due as a result of a change to Local Council Tax Support (LCTS) relating to an individual.

The Council administered HB and CTB on behalf of the DWP, which was then reimbursed to the Council as a subsidy for any HB and CTB paid, therefore any DWP error overpayments were at no cost to Council Tax payers. LCTS was a local discount scheme which was not governed by the same rules applied to HB and CTB and as such the cost of the scheme fell on Council Tax payers. The report informed Committee of the circumstances relating to overpayments to an individual, which had resulted from an underpayment of state pension over a sixteen-year period, for which the individual was not responsible. 

RESOLVED THAT COMMITTEE:

1.    Approve writing off of £45,496.32 in Housing Benefit overpayments and £4,301.89 in Council Tax Benefits that occurred as a result of DWP error.

2.    Approve writing off £9,103.15 additional Council Tax due that had occurred as a result of DWP error.

Councillor S Hirst left the meeting in respect of the next agenda item.