We try to make the right decision each time about your benefit, sometimes you may disagree with this decision. When we have assessed your entitlement to benefit we will write to you to explain how we have reached this decision. If your circumstances change and we reassess your benefit we will write to you about this, even if your benefit does not change. Although we try to make our letters clear, you may not always understand how we have reached our decision or how this affects you.

The following steps you have the right to ask for:

You can find out more information about our decision by contacting us in writing, by phone or in person, at our customer services desk. We will explain our decision over the phone or in writing.

You can ask for a statement giving the reasons why we have reached our decision. You can do this by writing to our offices within 28 days of the date of the decision letter. We will try to write to you within 14 days with a statement of reasons for our decision.

If you disagree with the decision that we have made you have the right to ask for your claim to be looked at again.

You can do this by writing to our offices within 28 days of the date on the decision letter giving reasons why you disagree with the decision. If you have any information that you would like to add please remember to include this. You must remember to sign this request.

If you have asked for a written statement of the reasons for the decision we will add on the time it takes us to reply so that we do not cause you to run out of time to request a revision.

We will then check all the details used to make our decision. A different person to the one that made the original decision will carry out this check. If any of these details are incorrect your benefit will be revised and we will write to you. If we are unable to change our decision we will confirm this in writing.

If we do not change our decision or you are still unhappy with the revised benefit you can request an appeal. If you request an appeal, an independent appeal tribunal administered by the Appeals service will look at your claim. 

Your appeal must be made within 28 days of the decision, in writing, advising us of the decision that you are appealing against and why you are appealing.  If you need help to do this you can contact us for advice.  We would recommend that you complete our form (see printable leaflets and forms) to help guide you through the process.  You must remember to sign your request.

If you do not put your request in writing within 28 days you can still make a late request. You must advise why you did not write within the 28 days. We can consider this request but cannot always accept this.

We will send you a new decision if possible. If not we will prepare our papers for the tribunal explaining our decision.

You will get a form to complete and return within 14 days to agree to the tribunal. You must return this form within the 14 days.

There will be a panel of tribunal members who will hold a hearing that you can attend to put forward your case. This should be somewhere local. We may attend this hearing to put forward our reasons for the decision.

There is normally one member and this person will have a legal qualification. They will provide you with a written decision at the end of the hearing.

If you do not wish to attend the hearing, or have a hearing, a decision can still be made. You will receive this decision in writing. There is still a right of appeal against their decision (to a social security commissioner) if you think that the decision is legally wrong.

You ask us to look at our decisions again, but in some cases if we cannot change our decision you will not be able to appeal to a tribunal. This could be a decision about;

• What information you are required to provide
• Not to accept a late request to change a decision
• How often we pay you your housing benefit
• How we recover any overpaid benefit

A landlord has fewer rights of appeal. A landlord may appeal against a decision not to pay housing benefit directly to the landlord or if we have asked the landlord to repay overpaid benefit.

A landlord cannot appeal on your behalf about the amount of rent we pay you.

For more information about making an appeal you can contact our offices or other organisations. See contact us and useful contacts.