Housing Benefit and Council Tax Support
Housing Benefit Overpayments
Sometimes too much Housing Benefit is being paid. There can be a number of reasons for this including the Council not being informed of changes that affect Housing Benefit entitlement on time.
The reason for the overpayment is included in your notification letter along with your rights if you disagree with the Housing Benefit overpayment, but if you require a further explanation of an overpayment please contact us.
If an overpayment is recoverable from you there are a number of ways for you to pay it back.
Overpayment Appeals
If you think that the overpayment is incorrect, you can ask us to look at the decision again. Please write to us within one calendar month outlining the reason why you think that the overpayment is incorrect and supplying us with relevant proofs. Further details about this process can be found in your notification letters or on the Revisions and Appeals page below.
Repaying an overpayment
If an overpayment is recoverable from you there are a number of ways for you to pay it back.
If you are still in receipt of Housing Benefit, then the easiest way to pay an overpayment is by us taking it straight out of your Housing Benefit.
If your Housing Benefit has ceased, you can make an arrangement to pay this off in instalments. You can pay in a number of ways, including credit or debit card, paying at a bank or setting up a standing order. Please contact us to arrange a repayment plan.
The Council can also ask the Department for Work and Pensions to make deductions to repay overpaid Housing Benefit from certain benefits and the Council can also ask employers to make deductions from earnings to repay overpaid Housing Benefit.