Mid Devon District Council has received a judgement from the Regulator for Social Housing, following its housing rent calculation error.

The Council made a self referral to the regulator in September 2024, following the discovery of a historic error in the way it applied formula rent to the majority of our tenants.

Since the error was identified the Council has worked with the regulator and our tenants to rectify the error as soon as possible.

This judgement does not alter our process to refund any money owed from overpayments, nor does it change our position regarding any underpayments, which the Council is not looking to recoup.

The Council will continue to engage constructively with the regulator to address the legacy of the historic issues that led to this situation and has a dedicated team in place to support this.

Simon Newcombe, Head of Housing & Health, said:

“This judgement highlights the error, which the Council raised following an independent audit commissioned by the Council. This judgement was expected and we continue to work closely with the regulator to set out our refund process, while maintaining regular contact with our tenants.

“While the sums of money are significant I would like to reassure our tenants that anyone who was overcharged has already been put on their correct rent and that any refunds owed to them are currently being calculated, on an individual basis. I would also like to reiterate that anyone undercharged will remain in this position until a change in tenancy.

“We welcome recognition from the regulator that the Council has been fully transparent in its approach whilst communicating with all our tenants and taking steps to correct the error as quickly as possible.”

The full judgement is available here. 

Further Information:

• All tenants were contacted towards the end of 2024 and made aware if they have been under or overcharged. More detailed work is still ongoing to finalise precise levels of overpayments based on current and historic circumstances.
• As of January 2025, rents were corrected for any overcharged tenants.
• The Council is not looking to recoup any money from underpayments and rent for those in the undercharged category will stay the same unless there is a change in tenancy.
• The Council is planning to refund money owed, dating back up to 18 August 2018, which is based on the legal advice given to us. Six years is the statutory limitation, meaning the maximum time after an event that legal proceedings can be started.
• The Council will issue any refunds owed in tranches, with tenants who have not been in receipt of either Universal Credit or Housing benefit likely to be refunded first, followed by those in receipt of Housing Benefit and finally those who may have had some of their rent paid for via Universal Credit. The Council hopes to issue these first refunds in the upcoming months. For those on Universal Credit refunds are likely to take longer than hoped. This is because the calculation of Universal Credit payment sits with the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) and cannot be processed by the Council until the DWP has calculated the amounts and shared this information. Although this may take some time, the Council continues to work closely with the DWP to ensure refunds can be processed as quickly as possible.
• All rental income from council properties is ring fenced into our Housing Revenue Account, which by law, must be used solely for council housing purposes. This means our rental charges do not have an impact on any other council service or charges.
• We are in regular contact with other councils and housing associations who have made similar rent setting errors to share best practice in correcting these issues.
• Updated FAQs can be viewed on our website and anyone concerned with the rent corrections should contact us at rentcorrections@middevon.gov.uk or by calling 01884 255 255.