Updated 16 November 2011
Speed of processing information – General guidance
- Acceptable claim forms
- Effective claims
- Defective claims
- Treat As Made date
- Initial date of contact
- Decisions on claims
- Payments on account
- Withdrawn claims
- Designated offices
Acceptable claim forms
HB/CTB claims must be made in writing:
- on a claim form approved for the purpose and provided free of charge by the LA, for example;
- HCTB1, full claim form
- HCTB1(PC), pensioner claim form
- HCTB1 (PCA), shortened pensioner claim form
- via LA Input Document (LAID) – received from Jobcentre Plus when a claim associated with IS/JSA/ESA(IB) and made through the Customer Management System (CMS), see Customer Management System – A Guide for Local Authorities
- via LA Claim information (LACI) – received from the PDCS
- HBRR1, HB Rapid Reclaim form
- LA ‘shortened’ claim form
- tele-claims or e-enabled claims
- in a form otherwise acceptable to the LA, for example a letter, see HB/CTB Guidance Manual, A2 How claims must be made – Para 2.190
You can see examples of claim forms in Claims guidance - Model documents
Effective claims
A claim on an approved form is properly completed and, therefore, effective when the claim form or LAID/LACI has been completed in accordance with the instructions on the form and the customer has provided the supporting information and evidence requested on that form.
If a customer makes a dated statement in writing that they want to claim benefit, and otherwise provides you with the information and evidence that you would have required if the claim had been made on an approved claim form or LAID/LACI, then this claim will also be an effective claim, see HB/CTB Bulletin U9/2004, paragraph 21.
In some cases, you may then require additional information or evidence. The customer should provide this within a calendar month (or such longer period as is reasonable).
Defective claims
A claim is defective if it is:
- made on an approved form but is not properly completed, or
- clearly a claim but is not made on an approved form and does not provide the necessary information or evidence that you would have required if the claim had been made on an approved claim form, for example a letter saying that the writer wants to claim benefit but with little or no other information.
However, the claim must be Treated As Made from the date the original claim was received if it is followed up within the appropriate timescales by a properly completed claim form or LAID/LACI, or the necessary information or evidence requested on that form to make it effective.
Treat As Made date
Receipt of a claim for HB/CTB or notification of a change at any designated office will be the processing time starting point except when a claim to HB/CTB is made in advance under HB R 83(10), 83(11)*, in which case the count will start from the Treat As Made (TAM) date determined by the LA under those regulations.
* CTB R 69(12) (13); HB SPC R 64(11)(12); CTB SPC R 53(12)(12a)
If the claim is properly decided on or before the Treat As Made (TAM) date, the time taken to process the claim will be one day. If the decision is made on or before the TAM date then the one day processing time is appropriate. If the decision is made after the TAM date but before the entitlement start date, then processing time is counted from the TAM date to the date the decision is made. If the decision is not made until after the TAM and the entitlement start date, then processing time is counted from the claim received date to the date the decision is made.
Initial date of contact
If a customer makes a dated statement in writing that they want to claim benefit, and otherwise provides you with all the information you need to process the claim, the claim can be Treated As Made from that date if it is followed up by a properly completed claim form. The customer should provide the information within one month of being asked to do so, but you may extend this period if the circumstances need it. Treat the date of any HB claim as the date the applicant or third party first notifies an LA designated office (or DWP for a claim linked to IS/JSA/Pension Credit/Employment Support Allowance (ESA)) of their intention to make a claim, provided the claim is received at either office, within a month of the claim form being issued, or any reasonable longer period.
Decisions on claims
A decision will result in the claim being successful or unsuccessful. Claims have to be effective before they can be properly decided. Once a claim is effective, a decision must then be made, even if any additional information you require has not been received (assuming that this is available and can reasonably be provided). See HB/CTB Bulletin U9/2004, paragraphs 11-15 and 28.
When the customer has failed to remedy a defective claim and the time limit lapses, a decision must be given on that basis. See HB/CTB Bulletin U9/2004, paragraphs 24-27.
Payments on account
A decision by the LA to make a payment on account in respect of any claim does not count as a full decision on that claim and therefore will not count towards the speed of processing information.
Withdrawn claims
When the customer decides not to proceed and withdraws a claim, no decision is required as there is no longer a claim on which to make a decision.
Designated offices
The definition of a designated office is (from HB
regulation, R 2(1))*
‘The office designated by the relevant authority for the receipt
of claims to HB/CTB either by
- notice upon or with a form approved by it for the purpose of claiming HB/CTB, or
- reference upon or with such a form to some other document available from it and sent by electronic means or otherwise on application and without charge, or
- any combination of the provisions set out in sub-paragraphs a and b above.’
*see also CTB R 2(1); HB SPC R 2(1); CTB SPC R 2(1))
The LA’s claim form for HB/CTB, or a covering notice accompanying the form, will specify either a list of designated office addresses to which the customer can return the claim form, or state where these addresses can be found, or a combination of both. This information should include all the designated offices as required by the above regulation.
By definition, not all LA offices are designated offices unless they are specifically stated as being designated to receive HB/CTB claims on the forms and notices mentioned above. This also applies to DWP offices, which are also not designated offices unless they, too, are specifically stated as being designated to receive HB/CTB claims on the forms and notices mentioned above.
