When an assessed income figure for pension is notified to the HB department by the DWP, is there any provision for the HB dept to modify this figure. I am thinking specifically of deferred pension income.

In the December 2004 pre-budget report the chancellor said that "people who defer their state retirement pension and who also may be eligible for Working and Child Tax Credits, Housing Benefit or Council Tax Benefit will have their notional state retirement pension disregarded for the purpose of assessing their entitlement while deferring"

(section 5.51 of report)
http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/media/92B/F6/pbr04_chap05_282.pdf

Age Concern have been told by the Adelphi that an SI to achieve this should be issued in time for 6 April

The legislation has been introduced, and deferred pension is not counted as income for WTC/CTC, or HB/CTB. However it is counted as income for GPC/SPC.

If anyone who defers pension is entitled to SPC (unlikely) the deferred pension will be included in the AIF passed to HB/CTB by the DWP. Hence my question: do HB/CTB have the power to amend the AIF?

I've spoken to DWP about this. There is no provision for amending the AIF in this circumstance. They acknowlege that this produces an anomaly as it's possible to construct cases where a fall in income creating a small entitlement to savings credit results in a bigger drop in housing/council tax benefit - because (as David says) the AIF will include the deferred pension as notional income but the HB/CTB income assessment will not. I was told that there are no current plans to address this.

From reading the HB circular in this subject (A8/2005) it would appear not. The circular states that the amendments to the legislation do not affect HB/CTB cases with Pension Credit. We are to continue using the AIF in these cases.