The Housing Benefit (General) Amendment (No. 3) Regulations 2001

Amendment of the Housing Benefit Regulations

2.—(1) In regulation 11 of the Housing Benefit Regulations (maximum rent)—

(a) in paragraph (1) at the beginning insert “Subject to paragraph (1A)”;

(b) after paragraph (1) insert the following paragraph—

“(1A) Where the rent officer makes and notifies an authority of a determination of a single room rent in accordance with article 3A of the Rent Officers Order on or after 2nd July 2001—

(a) the maximum rent shall be determined in accordance with paragraphs (2) to (12) without a further application for a determination under regulation 12A having been made; and

(b) the authority’s superseding decision shall take effect from 2nd July 2001.”

(2) In regulation 12A of the Housing Benefit Regulations (requirement to refer to rent officers), after paragraph (1) there shall be inserted the following new paragraph—

“(1AA) In a case where a relevant authority has received notification of a determination of a single room rent pursuant to paragraph 5 of Schedule 1 to the Rent Officers Order before 2nd July 2001 and the authority is relying on that determination for the purposes of a decision under regulation 11 (maximum rent) that determination shall cease to have effect on the day before 2nd July 2001 and the authority shall make an application for a determination of the single room rent to have effect from 2nd July 2001 unless, on or after 2nd July 2001 but before 2nd October 2001, the Rent Officer notifies the authority of his determination of that single room rent effective from 2nd July 2001 without a further application having been made.”

(3) In Schedule 1A of the Housing Benefit Regulations (excluded tenancies)—

(a) in paragraph 2(2)(a) and (b) at the beginning insert “subject to head (c)”;

(b) in paragraph 2(2) after head (b) insert the following head—

“(c) in a case where the determination mentioned in sub-paragraph (1) was made before 2nd July 2001 and it was, or was made in conjunction with, a determination of a single room rent pursuant to paragraph 5 of Schedule 1 to the Rent Officers Order.”

(c) in paragraph 3(3)(f) at the end insert “on or after 2nd July 2001”.