HOUSING
THINK TWICE before Rejecting a Quarter
S
ome families are being caught out by the option now given by DIO to allow occupants to reject an offer of SFA. Here
we look through the process and pitfalls.
The fact that families can now reject an offer of a quarter if they wish is an improvement in service and gone are the days where it was, ‘that house or nothing’. However, at the moment, it is not as straightforward as it seems.
The Federation has been contacted by a number of families who had, or were considering, rejecting the first SFA offered to them for personal reasons. Many felt that, while the property offered was to their entitlement, the house did not meet their specific needs and they therefore sought an alternative offer.
Unfortunately, some families were unaware of the implications of rejecting that first offer of SFA. Once a rejection is made the Defence Infrastructure
Organisation (DIO) is not, at the moment, obliged to give a timescale for when a second offer might be made.
The current policy states that if an occupant refuses the offer for ‘personal reasons’ they will be placed on a waiting list but there is no guarantee of when, or indeed if, a future offer will be made. Occupants should also be aware that there is pressure on SFA estates and they may not be granted permission to retain SFA at their old duty station. Therefore they may need to make their own arrangements for accommodation whilst they wait for a second offer.
There may also be other ramifications to consider. For example, it may affect your entitlement to CEA (if you claim it). We have seen many cases, where the Service person was deemed to be serving ‘voluntarily separated’ because a family chose to stay where they were, allowing the Service member of the family to commute, while they awaited a second offer. As a result, demands for repayment of CEA are increasing and this can lead to other pressures.
It is a fundamental condition of CEA that the claimant is accompanied by their family at their duty station and there must therefore be an acceptance of family mobility and accompanied service as defined in JSP 752, Chapter 1, Section 2, Paragraph 01.0202 for the claim to stand.
If applicants reject the first offer on personal grounds, DIO cannot guarantee when another offer will be made and you may see others being allocated SFA ahead of you.
The existing policy regarding ‘second offers’ of SFA continues to create major challenges, for families, the HASC allocation teams and unit personnel staff. DIO, the single Service Housing Colonels and the Families Federations have all elevated their concerns over this issue to the MoD Accommodation and Allowances policy staff and we await further guidance.
In the meantime, please seek advice before you reject an offer. SFA is in short supply. If you receive an offer of SFA but you are not happy with it, for whatever reason, DON’T immediately reject it. Contact the HASC, particularly if there are medical or welfare grounds and consult and discuss with the HASC and/or your local unit personnel staff BEFORE you decide to reject it.
www.raf-ff.org.uk Envoy Winter 2012 35
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