CH24A - Child Benefit and Guardian's Allowance - If You Think Our Decision is Wrong
Contents
- Introduction
- The decision
- What if I disagree with your decision?
- How do I appeal against your decision?
- Where to get help and advice
- Other organisations who can help
- Appeal form
This leaflet explains what you can do if you have applied for or are getting Child Benefit or Guardian's Allowance, and you think our decision is wrong.
Introduction
You can ask us to explain our decision. If you do not agree with our explanation, we will look at the decision again.
For most decisions, you may also be able to appeal to an independent tribunal who can change our decision if they agree that it is wrong. However, there are time limits for asking us to look at decisions again and for appealing.
We want to make sure you and your family get the right help at the right time.
The decision
If you get a letter or form from us with a decision about your Child Benefit or Guardian's Allowance that you do not agree with, you can ask us to look at it again. If we do not change the decision, in some cases you may be able to appeal to an independent tribunal. The decision letter will tell you if you can appeal.
If you receive a decision letter or form from us it is usually because you have
- claimed Child Benefit or Guardian's Allowance
- had a change of circumstances affecting your Child Benefit or Guardian's Allowance
- been told to repay an overpayment of Child Benefit or Guardian's Allowance.
There are special rules if you are not claiming the benefit yourself.
If you are an appointee (that is, officially appointed to act for someone who cannot act for themselves) you can ask us to look again at a decision about their benefit.
The decision letter will tell you if you can appeal for them. If so, you
- can appeal on someone else's behalf with their written permission
- do not have to be legally qualified
- can be an adviser, a family member or anyone else the customer has asked to represent them.
What if I want more information about your decision?
If you want us to look at our decision again or want to appeal against it, you
- must contact the Child Benefit Office that sent your decision letter within one month of the date on the decision letter, not the date you contact the office
- can phone, write or visit the office
- can ask for one or both of the following
- a verbal explanation of the reasons for the decision
- a written statement of reasons for the decision to help you decide what to do, if we have not already sent you one.
We will send the statement of reasons within 14 days.
If you are still not satisfied you can
If you ask for a written statement of reasons, and receive it within one month of our decision, the one month will be extended by 14 days, otherwise the extra 14 days will be from the date we sent you the written statement of reasons.
What if I disagree with your decision?
You should tell the Child Benefit Office that sent you the decision letter within one month of the date on the letter.
If you ask for
- an explanation first, we still count the one month from the date on the letter
- a written statement of reasons, you will usually have the one month plus 14 days.
If the statement arrives after the one month you will have a further 14 days from the date on the written statement (see Late applications).
If special circumstances prevent you from contacting us within one month, we may still be able to change the decision. Tell us what they are when you contact us.
If you ask us to look at a decision again more than one month after the date on the decision letter and do not have special circumstances, we may still be able to change the decision. But this will usually only be from the date you wrote to us.
What happens next?
If you ask us to look at a decision again, a different member of staff will usually check if it is correct. If it is not, we will change it.
Can the decision be changed?
If you asked us to look at our decision again within one month, or had special circumstances which meant you could not, we will change the decision from the date of the original decision.
If you do not agree with the new decision, you can ask us to look at it again. If you do this after one month and did not have special circumstances, we will usually change the decision from the date you wrote to us and write to you with our new decision.
What if the decision cannot be changed?
If we cannot change the decision, we will send you a letter telling you this and confirming our original decision.
Our letter will tell you if you can appeal against the original decision.
If you can appeal, the one month time limit starts again from the date on the letter we send confirming the decision.
What is an appeal tribunal?
Appeals against Child Benefit and Guardian's Allowance decisions are considered by appeal tribunals, which are administered by the Appeals Service. Both are completely independent of the Child Benefit Office and HM Revenue & Customs.
For more information about tribunals, get leaflet N1260DMA 'A guide to Dispute, Supersession and Appeal' from your local Jobcentre Plus.
A tribunal will have up to three members who are expert in the issues involved in your appeal. All tribunals have a legally qualified member to help apply the law to your appeal.
Tribunals may also include someone with
- medical qualifications
- financial qualifications, or
- experience or knowledge of disability issues.
The appeal tribunal cannot
- change the law or pay more money than the law allows, or
- look at changes in your circumstances which happened after we made the decision or award.
What does the appeal tribunal look at?
The tribunal can only look at the evidence, the law and the circumstances at the time we made the decision you are appealing against.
It cannot
- look at changes of circumstances that happened after we made the decision
- change the law, or
- pay more money than the law allows.
You should immediately report any change of circumstances that could
- affect your Child Benefit or Guardian's Allowance, or
- mean you could claim again.
Do not wait for the appeal hearing. Contact the Child Benefit Office at the address on your decision.
How do I appeal against your decision?
If you still think a decision is wrong after
- you have received
- a letter telling you our decision (it will tell you if you have the right to appeal against it), or
- a written statement of reasons for our decision, or
- we have explained our decision to you
then fill in the appeal form at the centre of this leaflet and send it to the Child Benefit Office that sent you the decision within one month of the date of the decision letter.
You can get help to complete the form from an advice centre or a solicitor (see Other Organisations who can help for more information).
Late appeals
Appeals Service may not accept your appeal if it is received more than one month after the date on your decision.
A late appeal will only be accepted if special circumstances caused the delay, such as
- a death
- a serious illness
- absence abroad
- a postal strike, or
- some other special circumstance.
You should explain why you could not appeal within one month on the form at the back of this leaflet. You must satisfy certain conditions before The Appeals Service accept a late appeal.
They will look at the reasons you give to see
- if there were special circumstances for the delay
- when you received the decision
- if it is in the interests of justice that your appeal is accepted, or
- if your appeal is reasonably likely to succeed.
Only a legally qualified tribunal member can reject your appeal.
The Appeals Service cannot accept a late appeal if you misunderstood the law, or interpretation of the law has changed since the decision was made.
Your appeal cannot be accepted if you appeal 13 months or more after the date on your decision.
What happens after I appeal?
We may then offer you an explanation of our decision or look at it again if we have not already done so.
If we agree that the original decision is wrong and the new decision is to your advantage, we will send you a new decision and your appeal will stop. If you do not agree with the new decision, you can appeal against it.
If we agree that the original decision is wrong but the new decision is not to your advantage, we will send you a new decision. Your appeal will continue against the new decision. You will have another month to comment on the new decision.
If we do not change our decision, we will send the Appeals Service
- your appeal, and an explanation of the law and facts used to make the decision, and
- any other relevant papers.
You and your representative if you have one, will be sent
- a copy of the appeals papers (read these very carefully. If you do not understand something, ask the Child Benefit Office that sent you the decision, an advice centre or solicitor to help you) and
- a form that asks you questions about how you want your appeal to be heard -you can choose between an oral hearing and a paper hearing - and you must complete and send the form back to the Appeals Service within 14 days. If you do not, they will assume that you do not want to continue with your appeal and you could end it without a hearing. If you choose an oral hearing, please note that people who go to their hearing generally do better than those who do not.
Oral hearing
You can go to this appeal hearing. You can take someone with you to represent
you, such as a friend or an advice centre worker. If you choose an oral
hearing, please note that people who go to their hearing generally do better
than those who do not. At the oral hearing
- the tribunal may ask you questions
- you can ask questions and call witnesses to give evidence, and
- there will usually be someone representing HM Revenue & Customs at the hearing who may ask you questions and call witnesses.
If you choose an oral hearing but find that you cannot go, you must let the Appeals Service know straight away. If you have a good reason why you cannot attend, you may be able to arrange another date. If you do not let them know that you cannot attend, the tribunal may hear your appeal without you.
Oral hearings are usually open to the public, but anyone who goes to the hearing will normally be involved in the appeal. You can ask to have your appeal heard in private.
If you live abroad and want an oral hearing, tell the Appeals Service that you want to go to the hearing or want to send someone to represent you. The Appeals Service can arrange for your appeal hearing to be
(UK) means England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland
- near the place you arrive in the United Kingdom (UK)
- near your representative if you have one, or
- delayed until you are in the UK.
Expenses
The Appeals Service may pay for some of your tribunal expenses, for example, travel costs.
If you live abroad you will have to pay your own fares to and from the UK. But, you may be able to get expenses while you are in the UK and the appeal hearing is going on.
For more information about expenses, contact the Appeals Service office handling your appeal.
Paper hearing
You cannot go to this appeal hearing.
You should send any information you think will help your case to the Appeals Service straight away, as you will not be told the date of a paper hearing. The Appeals Service will hear your appeal and send you the decision.
The tribunal can refuse your request for a paper hearing if they think an oral hearing is more suitable.
If you choose a paper hearing but change your mind, you can change to an oral hearing by writing to the Appeals Service straight away.
The result
Whether you have an oral or paper hearing the Appeals Service will give or send you a decision notice briefly explaining the tribunal's decision as soon as possible after the appeal hearing. They will also send a copy to the Child Benefit Office that made the original decision.
You can also ask for a statement of reasons which explains the tribunal's decision including the facts and the law used. You must do this within one month of the date you are given or sent the decision notice. You must have a copy of the statement of reasons if you appeal to the Social Security Commissioners. See What if I disagree with the tribunal's decision? below.
You can get a record of the appeal hearing record of the proceedings up to six months from the date of the hearing.
If your appeal is successful, the Child Benefit Office that deals with your benefit will usually carry out the tribunal's decision as soon as they receive their copy. If they appeal to the Social Security Commissioners they may not carry out the decision straightaway.
What if I disagree with the tribunal's decision?
If you do not agree with the tribunal's decisions, you may be able to appeal to the Social Security Commissioners. They are independent lawyers and not from the Child Benefit Office, HM Revenue & Customs
or any government department.
Can I appeal to the Social Security Commissioners?
Appeals can be made by
- anyone who has already appealed to the Appeals Service
- HM Revenue & Customs
- in some cases, a trade union or similar organisation
- people who have to repay an overpayment.
What can I appeal to the Social Security Commissioners about?
You can only appeal to the Social Security Commissioners on a point of law, and not about questions of facts.
How do I appeal to the Social Security Commissioners?
Your decision letter from the Appeals Service will tell you what to do if you are unhappy with the decision. Read this carefully as it tells you about important time limits for your appeal.
You cannot appeal unless you first get the statement of reasons for the tribunal's decision .
If you think the tribunal did not apply the law correctly, you can6apply for leave to appeal to the Social Security Commissioners. You must do this within one month of the date the statement of reasons was sent to you.
For more information about appealing to the Social Security Commissioners, get leaflet NI260DMA 'A guide to Disputes, Supersession and Appeal' from your local Jobcentre Plus.
If you appeal to the Social Security Commissioners, you must send6the statement of reasons with your application, otherwise your application may not be looked at.
A legally qualified tribunal member will decide if your appeal can be sent to the Social Security Commissioners or looked at again by a different tribunal.
You can ask an advice centre, solicitor, or another suitable person or organisation to help with your application.
Late applications
Late applications for a statement of reasons or leave to appeal to the Social Security Commissioners can only be accepted in special circumstances. You will need to show why you couldn't apply on time.
Where to get help and advice
For help and advice, contact the Child Benefit Office that sent you the decision at the address and phone number at the top of your decision letter, or form.
To read the law itself, ask the Child Benefit Office that sent you the decision. They will let you see copies of the Acts of Parliament Social Security regulations, and anything else that affects Child Benefit decisions.
Some large libraries may also have copies.
For more information about disputes and appeals get leaflet NI260DMA 'A guide to Dispute, Supersession and Appeal' from your local Jobcentre Plus, or try the DWP website.
For your nearest Jobcentre Plus look for the display advert under Jobcentre Plus, Benefits Agency or Social Security in the business numbers section of the phone book.
When you contact us
Please tell us your full name Child Benefit number National Insurance (NI) number, and daytime phone number, if you have one.
Helplines
For details of legal services, phone the Community Legal Service on 0845 608 1122.
People with speech or hearing difficulties can dial 0845 609 6677
Other organisations who can help
Advice centres
Advice centres, like the Citizens Advice Bureau and law centres, can represent you help you understand our decisions about your Child Benefit or
Guardian's Allowance help you to fill in forms or to write a letter, and sometimes go with you to the tribunal that hears your appeal.
It will help the advice centre if you show them any letters or forms you have about the decision you think is wrong.
Trade unions
Trade unions may also offer free advice to their members and speak for you at the tribunal that hears your appeal.You can find addresses for these organisations
- in the business section of the phone book
- in your Thomson Local directory
- in Yellow Pages, or
- at a library.
Solicitors
You can ask a solicitor if they can advise you under the legal help scheme. However, the scheme does not cover your solicitors' fees for helping you at a hearing. Neither the Child Benefit Office, HM Revenue & Customs nor the Appeals Service can give you money to pay for solicitor's fees.
If you live abroad
You can ask someone in the UK to act for you. They may be able to get help from a solicitor under the legal help scheme (see above).
General Information
We produce a wide range of leaflets.
Our leaflets are also available from any HM Revenue & Customs office or Enquiry Centre. Most offices are open to the public from 8.30am to 5.00pm, Monday to Friday. Addresses are in your local phone book under 'HM Revenue & Customs'.
Your library or Citizens Advice Bureau may also have copies of some of our leaflets, but may not have them all.
We have a full range of services for people with disabilities, including leaflets in Braille, audio and large print. For details, please ask your local HM Revenue & Customs office or Enquiry Centre.
These notes are for guidance only and reflect the position at the time of writing.
They do not affect any right of appeal.
