The husband of a couple claimed CTB and it was awarded. About a year later he ups and leaves for fear of the violence in Salford and heads for the sunny climes of Blackpool, leaving his wife behind in the house. She does not inform the authority and they continue to pay council tax benefit. 4 years after he left she tells the authority that her husband had left (and that she has had an occupational pension for years). Since the claim was in her husbands name how is she fixed for underlying entitlement? Had the change been notified in time he would not have been entitled to CTB from when he left so does this leave her with no underlying entitlement throughout?

I don’t think it looks good.

If the husband was the claimant, as soon as he is permanently absent his entitlement to CTB will end. He will therefore have no U/E on his overpayment.

You now have a situation where his wife is retrospectively liable on her own (instead of joint and severally) for the Council Tax. She will need to make a claim and request backdating. Even if granted this can only go back 52 weeks.

Actually, the husband will have no entitlement to CTB, but probably no liability for CTAX either so the only issue is the retrospective liability for his wife and her claim.

Sorry, thought of that as soon as I pressed the "post message" button

The excess CTB is recoverable from the husband, not from her. I would argue that receovery via the council tax account in this situation would be an abuse of process.

The husband may continue to have a liablity for council tax until the LA decide he is no longer resident and his wife has the superior interest