A small number of people living in Exeter look set to receive refunds after it emerged that they shouldn't be paying the 'Bedroom Tax'.
Exeter City Council confirmed that it had identified 31 cases where people should not have been paying the tax due to an error by the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP).
The error affects working age tenants in social housing who have occupied the same home and been in receipt of housing benefit continuously since 1996. An oversight by the DWP when drafting up the legislation means that the housing benefit regulations dating from 1996 were not updated when the government implemented the 'Bedroom Tax'.
Cllr Rob Hannaford, Lead Councillor for Housing and Customer Access, said: "We recently established that a very small number of people in Exeter are entitled to more housing benefit than they were receiving. We are continually reviewing and correcting cases where necessary and this is just part of our everyday work.
"We are confident that we have identified the vast majority of cases through our records but would still ask people to get in touch with us if they feel that they are eligible for a refund."
There is no financial impact to the Council as the benefit is paid by the DWP.
For more information contact Steve Upsher, Communications Officer, on 01392 265103
