When do delays between the LA and the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) count?
A. A standard annual review is normally notified as a result of a diary date. In this situation, the count for the processing time would start when the confirmation is received from the VOA. However, if the customer notifies the LA of a change and information is requested from the VOA, any delay (between the VOA and the benefit processing centre) in receiving that information would count towards the processing time. Q. An LA is notified on the 17 April that a customer’s income has changed slightly but on examining the wages it is clear that the change in take home pay is due to tax and NI changes. The LA decides to exercise its discretion and disregard this change for 30 weeks as the claim has been highlighted for review in June because a child is turning 16. When the claim is reviewed in June and the change in income taken into account, is the 17 April the start date for the performance indicator? A. This should be treated as an advance notification. The count for the processing time
