Benefits Adjudication Regime: Correcting BenEfit Decisions

For policy, appeals and training officers, specialist decision makers and anyone with a keen interest in the adjudication rules in HB, UC and other benefits. 

(It is assumed delegates have some prior knowledge of benefits in general.) 

Thursday,  22nd May, 2025.

Full-Day Workshop: (9:40 - 4:30)  

Workshop Fee:  £270   (No VAT)

 Book 3 places and receive a 4th place FREE.

Also available for In-House Bookings - Online or at your own training venue.  We also provide a separate Programme on this topic aimed at the RSL / Landlord Sector. Please contact us for details.

The Benefits Adjudication Regime

Correcting Benefit Decisions

Grounds, Time Limits & Correct Effective Dates
 

In a perfect world, all HB decisions (and decisions about other benefits including PIP, UC etc) would be “right first time” and, once decided, would never need to be revisited. Unfortunately, that is not always how it turns out. For a host of reasons, a decision that is incorrect needs to be looked at again. Some (non-exhaustive) examples include:

• The claimant failed to disclose something (innocently or fraudulently), and as a result they have received too much or too little benefit: capital, a partner, a need for an extra bedroom, a new child, a pay rise etc;
• The decision maker overlooked something that was there is the documents but not picked up or made an inputting error- it happens!
• The Upper Tribunal or higher Courts have handed down new case law that changes the way a certain issue should dealt with;
• The claimant has received arrears of another benefit after a long assessment process or an appeal;
• An increase to the claimant’s earnings or pension income has effect retrospectively;
• You have simply changed your mind about something which, had you been dealing with it now, you might have viewed differently – for example, whether a tenancy is on a commercial basis, or whether a claimant receives more than minimal support.

When these matters come to light, the decision maker must deal with them correctly making a new decision that is both Tribunal judge-proof and Audit-proof. Issues to consider include:

• If the new decision will be advantageous to the claimant, can it be backdated or will it only run prospectively?
• Has there been a change of circumstance, or are we dealing with facts that existed all along but weren’t picked up in the original decision?
• Have a lot of decisions been made over the years that must now be changed en masse?

In this Workshop we look at the adjudication framework that governs all of the above matters. We learn about the difference between “revising” a decision and making a “superseding decision”. Do you have grounds to revise or supersede, and if so which should it be? When is there a time limit for an advantageous adjustment?

Very often the revision or supersession of one or more decisions will result in an overpayment. Even if you have a strong case on the merits, can you be sure that you have not left any technical loopholes that could be seized on a by a skilled rep and used to attack your decision in a Tribunal – do you have your “ducks in a row”?

Finally, what is the correct effective date of a superseding decision? They don’t all run from the following Monday!  

Presented by Peter Barker, a hugely experienced trainer, appeals presenter and submission writer. He started as a local authority appeals officer in the 1980s, and for many years he has represented local authorities in England, Wales and Scotland at both First-Tier and Upper Tribunal level. Tribunal Judges frequently comment on the high quality of Peter’s submissions. He combines a wealth of first-hand experience with expert knowledge of adjudication legislation and has a real enthusiasm for the topic.

Topics Covered:

The Basics

· Key terminology:

   o Decision;

   o Revision;

   o Superseding decision.

Revising A Decision

· Establishing grounds for revision;

   o “Any time” revision on limited grounds;

   o “Any grounds” revision within limited time.

· When the time limit can be extended.

Superseding Decisions  

· Available grounds;

· Time limits;

· Tribunal decisions.

Interaction between revision and supersession

· Changing a series of multiple decisions

· The difference between a late change and out of time revision

Effective Dates Of Superseding Decisions

· Important examples including:

   o Annual uprating;

   o More than one change in a week;

   o Pension Credit cases;

   o Changes to other benefits;

   o Too late to revise.

Case Studies

· Real life case studies involving some complex adjudication problems involving both HB and UC.

Contact us for In-House Online booking information  for this topic.  

We are always pleased to arrange most of our Workshops, such as this one, for staff from an individual organisation.