Benefits appeals - Print version

What do I need to do if I do not agree with a decision?

• You can ask us to look at the decision again (we call this a request for a revision or a reconsideration)

or

• You can make an appeal and have your claim considered by an independent Tribunal

It is important that you make it clear whether you are asking us to look at the decision again or whether you wish your request to be accepted as an appeal straight to an Independent Tribunal (please note this is a much lengthier process)

How to make an appeal

Appeal against a decision we have made [http://www.coventry.gov.uk/downloads/file/17912/appeal_form]

What information should be in my appeal?

• Your appeal must clearly state who the appeal is from and be either:
  • made in writing and signed by you, or
  • sent on an email. The email must be from an email address that we already hold for you on our records.
• The appeal can be made by someone else on your behalf, such as a  representative. We can accept the appeal if you give permission for a representative to make the appeal on your behalf.
• Your appeal must be made within one month of the date on your decision letter.
• If there are reasons why you could not send your appeal to us in that first month, you must contact us as soon as you can and explain why you could not appeal earlier.
• You must make it clear why you do not agree with the decision. It is not enough to say "I do not agree with the decision" or "the amount of benefit I have been awarded is not correct". You need to say why, and give facts. Sometimes it will be helpful to support your appeal with evidence.
• If you are a landlord, you can also appeal as explained above, but only in relation to a matter directly affecting you. For example, as a landlord, you can appeal if we are seeking to recover a Housing Benefit overpayment from you. You will need to clearly confirm the name and address of your tenant that your appeal is for.

When you can't appeal to a tribunal

If you think a decision is wrong you can always ask us to look at it again.

But, there are some decisions that you can't appeal against. These include:

• how we pay you (into your bank account)
• how often we pay you
• how we take back an overpayment if we have the right to take it back
• the level of rent we use to work out your benefit if you are a private tenant getting Local Housing Allowance
• any decision about Discretionary Housing Payments [https://www.coventry.gov.uk/dhp]

What happens when we receive a request to look at the decision again?

We will look at the decision again and decide if the decision was correct.  We will take into consideration what you have told us. We may need to contact you to ask for more information.

If the decision is wrong, we will change it. We may change the decision and pay you more benefit or we may change the decision and pay you less benefit. We will write to you and let you know what we have decided.

If we decide not to change the decision, because we think it is correct, we will send you a letter explaining why.

If we have looked at the decision again and you still do not agree, you can choose to appeal to a Tribunal. Your appeal must be made within one month of the date on your decision letter.

What happens when we receive an appeal?

We will check the decision again. We will take into consideration what you have told us and we may contact you to ask for more information.

If we change the decision, we will write and tell you and explain what you can do next.

If the decision is not going to be changed, we will send your appeal to the Tribunal Service. A copy of the appeal is sent to the Tribunal Service, and we include an explanation of the facts that we used when making our decision. We will also send a copy to you (and your representative, if you have one).

The Tribunal Service will ask you to complete a form, called a TAS1, which must be returned to them within 14 days.

The Tribunal Service

The Tribunal Service is made up of people who are legally-qualified and they are independent to us.

The Tribunal can only look at the evidence, the law, and the circumstances at the time the decision was first made.

The Tribunal Service will make a decision at the Tribunal hearing and will tell you its decision in writing.

What if I want to withdraw my appeal?

If we have not yet sent your appeal to the Tribunal Service, you must write to us and tell us that you want to stop your appeal. If you send us an email about this, the email must be from an email address that we already hold for you.

If your appeal has been sent to the Tribunal Service you must write to them to ask them to stop your appeal. If you send an email to the Tribunal Service about this, the email must be from an email address already held for you.

How do I appeal against a decision about my Council Tax Support claim?

If you don’t agree with a decision made by us about:

• whether you are entitled to Council Tax Support, or
• the amount of any Council Tax Support you receive,

you must write to us telling us why you disagree with the decision and we will look at the decision again.

We must reply to you within two months of getting your request.

If we have looked at our decision again and you are still unhappy with our decision, you can appeal to the Valuation Tribunal Service. You must contact them within two months of the date of our reply.

If you have not heard from us and it is two months since you wrote to us, you can appeal to the Valuation Tribunal Service. But you must contact them within four months of when you first wrote to us.

The address for the Valuation Tribunal Service is:

The Valuation Tribunal Service

Hepworth House

2 Trafford Court

Doncaster

DN1 1PN