Terms & Conditions

[Anonymous]

Just walked through the door and been hit with this one. Have a feeling I should know but not yet had the requisite cup of tea yet to get thinking.

HB payments made to agent as opposed to landlord. HB overpayment created. We have duly considered who the target of the overpayment recovery should be and in this case decided upon the agent.

Now the agent has complained and it has caused us to rethink.

Is the agent, strictly speaking the “person who received the payment”, or is it the landlord, in effect the ultimate destination of the HB payment?

😕

[Kevin D]

For HB purposes, where payment is made to an “agent”, the agent is a legitimate target (assuming all the other criteria are met etc).

[b:5c46e6b8d4]DAR 3(1)(e)[/b:5c46e6b8d4] makes clear reference to agents in defining persons affected.

Hope this helps.

[Anonymous]

Are you saying that the agent misrepresented or failed to disclose, or did the overpayment have some other cause?

[Anonymous]

This issue before a Commissioner in the case CH/2913/05. May be a while before we have a decision.

[Anonymous]

I had the new legislation from 10 April 2006 in mind

[aosulliv]

My understanding was that the Commissioners were looking at the new legislation as it has already been deemed as ultra virus

[Anonymous]

Thats the Tribunal of Commissioners CH/4234/2004 which I believe sat on 13-14 February 2006

[Kevin D]

[b:a502092fe2]CH/2913/2005[/b:a502092fe2] has now been issued:

http://www.osscsc.gov.uk/aspx/view.aspx?id=2148

In summary, recovery can be sought from agents.

[peterdelamothe]

Well spotted Kevin. This has not come through on the daily list HBINFO receives. It raises a significant number of issues to me. For instance:

If Hb is paid to the landlord via an agent, there appear now to be three main primary targets (subject to the usual misrep and failure to report a material fact rules). I presume the LA has to include the agent in the single individual letter – even if the LA decides that only the claimant is liable to repay. Thus they will have the right to attend a Tribunal because the latter could decide they are also a legitimate target.

[Author]

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