The Housing Benefit Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2006

Recovery of overpayments from prescribed benefits

102.—(1) For the purposes of section 73(4) of the Administration Act (recovery of overpaid housing benefit by deduction from other benefits), the benefits prescribed by this regulation are—

(a) any benefit except guardian’s allowance;

(b) income support;

(c) any benefit payable under the legislation of any member State other than the United Kingdom concerning the branches of social security mentioned in Article 4(1) of Regulation (EEC) No. 1408/71(1) on the application of social security schemes to employed persons, to self-employed persons and to members of their families moving within the Community, whether or not the benefit has been acquired by virtue of the provisions of that Regulation;

(d) a jobseeker’s allowance;

(e) state pension credit.

(2) For the purposes of paragraph (1)(c) the term “member State” shall be understood to include Switzerland in accordance with and subject to the provisions of Annex II of the Agreement between the European Community and its member States and the Swiss Confederation on the free movement of persons, signed at Brussels on 21st June 1999(2).

(3) Where the Department is satisfied that—

(a) a recoverable overpayment of housing benefit has been made, in consequence of a misrepresentation of or failure to disclose a material fact (in either case whether fraudulently or otherwise), by or on behalf of a claimant or any other person to whom a payment of housing benefit has been made; and

(b) the person who misrepresented that fact or failed to disclose it is receiving a sufficient amount of one or more of the benefits prescribed in paragraph (1) to enable deductions to be made for the recovery of the overpayment,

it shall, if requested to do so by an authority under regulation 99, recover the overpayment by deduction from any of those benefits.

(4) In paragraph (1)(a), “benefit” has the meaning it has in section 121(1) of the Act.

(1)

O.J. No. L149, 5.7.71, p.2; Regulation No. 1408/71 was restated in amended form in Regulation No. 118/97 (O.J. No. L28, 30.1.97, p.1)

(2)

Cm 4904