Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit
Any 'person affected' by a decision can ask the council to look at that decision again if they do not agree or think it is wrong. You can also appeal to an independent tribunal against the council's decision.
A decision can include, for example:
- the amount of benefit payable
- the rent eligible for benefit
- the calculation of a claimants income
- the calculation of the recovery of an overpayment
Some decisions do not carry a right of appeal. We will tell you if you do not have the right of appeal against the matter you are disputing.
If you ask us to revise our decision regarding a claim for benefit, we will look at our decision again and will make sure that it has been made correctly.
An appeal means that a tribunal, independent of Shropshire Council, will look at the decision we have made on your claim.
What should you do if you are not happy with a decision the council has made?
If you want us to look at our decision again, you must ask us to do this within one month of the date of the decision letter. We will check that our information is correct and if it is wrong we will change it.
If there are special circumstances that mean you cannot contact us within one month, we may still be able to change the decision. Tell us what the special circumstances are when you contact us.
If our decision cannot be changed, we will send you a letter telling you that we cannot change it and confirming why. The letter will also tell you if you can appeal.
If you are still unhappy with our decision after we have explained it, you can make an appeal to an independent tribunal called The Tribunals Service. To do this, you must write a letter to us, stating that you want to appeal against the decision we made on your claim, and giving full reasons for your request.
Further Information
If you have any further questions regarding appeals, please contact the Benefits Service.
Please follow the link on this page if you would like to make an appeal online. There is also a link to the Directgov website's beginners guide to benefits, which contains additional information on how to appeal against a benefits decision.