Benefit claims - important notice
You must return your application form immediately it is completed to the Civic Centre, even if you do not have all the relevant evidence required.
If you do not have all the relevant evidence available to return with your application form you have one month to do so.
All evidence provided must be original documents.
Any delays in returning your application form and the evidence required could affect your claim.
You must inform the Council, in writing, immediately of any changes in circumstances, which may affect your entitlement to benefit.
Examples of such changes are:
- Change of address
- Starting or stopping work
- A change in you or your partners income or of anyone else in your home
- When you stop getting Income Support/ Income based Jobseekers Allowance
- Changing jobs
- When you or your partner reach retirement age
- When your child/children leave school
- When people join or leave your household
If you do not tell us of any change, you may have to pay back benefit.
If you are in doubt as to when the application form should be sent or which evidence is required please call into the Civic Centre or enquire by telephone.
- Enquiries in person may be made at the Civic Centre between the hours of 8.45am to 5.15pm Monday to Thursday and 8.45am to 4.45pm on Friday.
- Enquiries by telephone are between the hours of 8.45am to 4.45pm Monday to Thursday and Friday 8.45am to 4.30pm, on 01322 343705.
The Council is committed to ensuring that money paid out in benefit goes to those entitled to receive it. If you are aware of anyone abusing the system please call our Investigation Section on 0800 6343245.
If you have delayed in making your claim and you want the Council to consider backdating it, you must prove that there was good cause for your failure to claim throughout the period you require backdating.
You are entitled to request in writing an explanation of how your benefit has been calculated or to request a reconsideration of any determination made about your claim.
If you have requested an explanation or reconsideration and you disagree with the reply, you have the right to make a written appeal setting out your reasons for doing so. Your appeal will be heard by an independent tribunal, which is administered by the Appeals Service. Appeal tribunals are held in Bexleyheath.
You have the right to make a written appeal to the Appeals Tribunal without first requesting an explanation or a reconsideration.
If you wish to request an explanation or reconsideration or to make an appeal, you should do so to this Authority within one month of the date of your entitlement letter or we may not be able to consider any dispute.
Data Protection
The information you have provided on this form will be used to assess your Housing/Council Tax Benefit. It will be held securely and some data may be shared with other departments within this authority to enable Dartford Borough Council to carry out its statutory functions.
Under Housing/Council Tax Benefit Regulations some data contained within this information, may be disclosed upon request, to external bodies such as the Benefits Agency and the Employment Service.
It may also be used in Data Matching exercises with other statutory bodies for the purpose of fraud prevention and detection.
