Social Welfare and Pensions Act 2012
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Entitlement to mortgage interest supplement. |
12.— Section 198 of the Principal Act is amended by inserting the following subsections after subsection (5A) (inserted by section 14 of the Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2008 ): | |
“(5AA) A person shall not be entitled to the supplement referred to in subsection (5) unless, at the time of making an application for that supplement, a designated person is satisfied that the person making the application has engaged with his or her mortgage lender in order to meet his or her mortgage repayment obligations, and | ||
(a) has, arising from such engagement, entered into and, where required, is complying with an alternative repayment arrangement agreed between that person and his or her mortgage lender in respect of his or her mortgage repayment obligations for a period of not less than 12 months, or | ||
(b) has— | ||
(i) arising from such engagement, entered into and, where required, is complying with an alternative repayment arrangement agreed between that person and his or her mortgage lender in respect of his or her mortgage repayment obligations for a period of less than 12 months in respect of that alternative repayment arrangement, and | ||
(ii) prior to entering into the alternative repayment arrangement referred to in subparagraph (i) the person had entered into and had complied with a different alternative repayment arrangement agreed between that person and his or her mortgage lender in respect of his or her mortgage repayment obligations, | ||
and the total number of months in respect of which that person has complied with the alternative repayment arrangements referred to in subparagraphs (i) and (ii) is a period of not less than 12 months. | ||
(5AB) Subsection (5AA) shall apply to a person who makes an application for the supplement referred to in subsection (5) on or after the day on which section 12 of the Social Welfare and Pensions Act 2012 comes into operation. | ||
(5AC) In subsection (5AA)— | ||
‘alternative repayment arrangement’ means any arrangement entered into by an applicant for the supplement referred to in subsection (5) with his or her mortgage lender— | ||
(a) in respect of his or her mortgage that incorporates a change in any terms or conditions of the mortgage that applied when the mortgage took effect, and | ||
(b) for the purpose of assisting that person to resolve any difficulties he or she may have in meeting his or her mortgage repayment obligations, | ||
and, without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing, includes any practice, referred to in a code of practice drawn up under section 117 of the Central Bank Act 1989 , that is specified for the purpose of resolving any difficulties with meeting mortgage repayment obligations.”. |