Internal review and appeals
Homeowners who are dissatisfied with one of the 4 Resilient Homes Program decisions outlined on this page can request an internal review or appeal.
The process
Homeowners who are dissatisfied with one of the four Resilient Homes Program decisions outlined below can request an internal review or an appeal.
This must be done within 90 days of receiving written notice of the decision, or, if a homeowner is submitting an appeal following an internal review, this must be submitted within 30 days of receiving writing notice of the internal review decision.
Late applications will generally not be accepted unless the homeowner can demonstrate there are extenuating circumstances. These extenuating circumstances must be submitted in writing by the homeowner to demonstrate why a late application should be accepted.
Decisions for which homeowners can seek an internal review or appeal
- Decision 1: The NSW Reconstruction Authority (the authority) has decided, after assessment, that a homeowner does not qualify for assistance under the Resilient Homes Program and the homeowner disagrees with that assessment.
- Decision 2: The authority makes an offer to a homeowner under a particular RHP stream (i.e. the Home Buyback stream, the Home Raising stream or the Home Retrofit stream) and the homeowner disagrees with the allocation.
- Decision 3: The authority makes an offer to a homeowner under the Home Buyback stream and the homeowner disagrees with the amount of the offer.
- Decision 4: The authority makes an offer to a homeowner under the Home Raising stream or the Home Retrofit stream and the homeowner disagrees with the scope of works proposed in the offer.
What is the difference between an internal review and appeal?
Internal reviews:
- Only RHP decisions can be reviewed.
- Homeowners' comments on the Resilient Homes Program decision and any relevant additional information about the RHP decision will be reviewed.
- Individual and Exceptional circumstances will not be considered and will be referred to the Independent Appeals Panel.
- The Resilient Homes Program decision may be re-made, depending on the outcome of the review.
Appeals:
Appeals can be made on Resilient Homes Program decisions in the following circumstances:
- Relevant additional information has become available.
- Incorrect information was relied upon.
- Individual or exceptional circumstances apply (these cannot relate to the scope of works for a Home Raising or Home Retrofit).
- Specific additional information will be required depending on the circumstances of the appeal.
Appeals will be considered by an Independent Appeals Panel. The RHP decision may be re-made, depending on the outcome of the appeal.
An internal review does not have to be completed first should a homeowner seek to appeal.
Both an internal review or appeal process can result in either the authority's original Resilient Homes Program decision being upheld, or the decision being changed.
How an internal review works
Homeowners can request an internal review of a Resilient Homes Program decision within 90 days of receiving written notice of that decision.
Homeowners who have received a Letter of Offer, and are within their 90 days to consider their offer, can advise the authority that they would like to lodge an appeal. These homeowners will be provided with a link to the online form.
Homeowners who have not received a Letter of Offer can submit a request online by visiting the RHP website.
Homeowners may be contacted by the authority during the process to discuss the review or to collect more information.
Internal reviews are completed by a Reconstruction Authority team member who was not involved in making the original decision.
If a review is successful, that is, the authority decision is different to the original RHP decision, the authority will implement the new decision. For example, the authority may make a new offer to the homeowner.
If the internal review is unsuccessful, that is, there is no change to the original RHP decision, where the Resilient Homes Program decision relates to an offer, the homeowner’s original offer from the authority will remain available for acceptance within 30 days of that decision.
If the homeowner disagrees with the outcome of an internal review, they have 30 days to appeal the decision provided there are relevant circumstances.
The authority aims to finalise internal reviews within 45 days of receiving the application form.
How an appeal works
A homeowner may appeal if they:
- have additional information and evidence which the authority did not have when making an RHP decision, or
- believe the authority considered incorrect information, and
- can provide the information they believe is correct and can provide evidence to support their position (e.g. a valuation report or sales evidence), and
- can explain what difference the correct information could make to the Resilient Homes Program decision.
If appealing under the authority's Individual and Exceptional Circumstances Policy, homeowners need to provide relevant supporting evidence.
If one of the above circumstances applies, a homeowner can appeal a Resilient Homes Program decision within:
- 90 days from the date they receive written notice of the original RHP decision, or
- 30 days from the date they receive written notice of the internal review decision.
Homeowners can advise the authority they would like to lodge an appeal of a Resilient Homes Program decision if they are within 90 days of receiving written notice of that decision, or within 30 days of receiving their Internal Review Decision, in which case they will be provided with a link to the online form.
Homeowners who have not received a Letter of Offer can submit a request online by visiting the RHP website.
The authority aims to complete Step 1 of the appeals process within 45 days of receiving the application form and finalise the appeal within 90 days.
Due to volume and complexity, some internal reviews and appeals may take longer than others to complete. The authority or Secretariat will aim to keep the homeowner updated if the internal review or appeal is expected to take longer to complete.
Individual or exceptional circumstances
A homeowner can appeal on the basis of individual or exceptional circumstances where:
- the homeowner’s age, disability or medical conditions affects their physical or cognitive ability
- the homeowner is facing socio-economic vulnerability, including the above considerations for any dependents that usually reside in the residential dwelling
- another stream may be more appropriate given the feasibility (both practically and economically) of delivering on the stream which would be allocated using the Risk Criteria. (For example, the Risk Criteria may indicate that the Home Raising stream should be allocated to a particular residential dwelling, but it may not be practical to raise (or relocate) the residential dwelling.)
- the consideration of Resilient Homes Program specific ‘neighbourhood precincts’ to facilitate effective land use outcomes, by consistently applying the same level of disaster resilience across two or more neighbouring properties
- the level of damage caused by the Flood Event, regardless of the location of the residence, relative to the modeled flood level (Annual Exceedence Probability)
- any works already undertaken on the homeowner on their property during or after the Flood Event and whether they align with the objectives of the RHP.
For more information, read the Resilient Homes Program Individual and Exceptional Circumstances Policy.
How an appeal is conducted
1
Eligibility checked by Secretariat
The Secretariat of the Appeals Panel (the Secretariat) will check the appeal application to ensure it is eligible for consideration by the Appeals Panel. For example, the appeal must relate to an RHP decision, meet at least one of the appeal circumstances, and include the required additional information. The Secretariat will recommend to the Appeals Panel that ineligible applications not be considered further. If the recommendation is accepted, the applicant(s) will be notified that their appeal application was not considered by the Appeals Panel because it was not eligible. The Appeals Panel can request that the Secretariat reconsider the eligibility of an application.
2
Secretariat prepares appeal for consideration
For applications assessed as eligible in Step 1, the Secretariat may seek further information from the homeowner and any other relevant source on behalf of the Appeals Panel. The Secretariat may prepare a summary report for the Appeals Panel.
3
Appeals Panel meets
The Appeals Panel will meet to consider the appeal application based on the relevant information before it (‘on the papers’). This will include:
- the documents provided by the homeowner,
- the authority's assessments including supporting evidence
- the Resilient Homes Program Guideline and other information.
The Appeals Panel can obtain or ask for additional information from any relevant source.
4
Appeals Panel decision
The Secretariat will advise the homeowner and the authority of the outcome of their appeal. If an appeal is successful (the Appeals Panel’s decision is different to the original RHP decision), the authority will implement the decision. For example, the NRRC may make a new offer to the homeowner.
If an appeal is unsuccessful (the Appeals Panel’s decision is the same as the original Resilient Homes Program decision) and this relates to an offer, the homeowner’s original offer from the authority will remain available for acceptance within 30 days of the decision.
Due to volume and complexity, some appeals may take longer than others to complete. The authority or Secretariat will keep the homeowner updated if the internal review or appeal is expected to take longer to complete.
If a homeowner is not satisfied with the outcome of an appeal, other options include contacting the New South Wales (NSW) Ombudsman.
Assistance in submitting an internal review or appeals application
Homeowners can ask for assistance to complete an internal review or appeals application forms at:
- one of the pop up information centres across the Northern Rivers (locations and opening hours can be found on the Resilient Homes Program website), or
- one of the recovery support service providers across the Northern Rivers (locations can be found at Recovery Support Services (RSS) (PDF 216.57KB).
Assistance and advice on internal reviews and appeals can also be obtained from community legal services and NSW Legal Aid.
Application costs
Homeowners will not generally be reimbursed for any costs that they incur for making an internal review or appeal, even if their internal review or appeal is successful.
However, for homeowners who have received a buyback offer and are seeking an internal review or appeal of their offer on the basis that they disagree with the valuation, the NSW Reconstruction Authority has included financial assistance in their offer that could be used by a homeowner requesting an internal review or making an appeal.
For example:
- the compensation package includes an allowance of $5,000 including GST for reasonable valuation costs, and
- homeowners can access up to $3,000 including GST for independent legal and financial advice about the Authority's offer and conveyancing costs.
If you have already submitted an internal review or appeal
We are committed to progressing internal reviews and appeals already submitted. The Authority aims to finalise internal reviews and appeals (step 1) in 45 days and appeals (step 2-4) in 90 days.
However, due to volume and complexity, some internal reviews and appeals may take longer than others to complete.
The Authority will aim to keep homeowners updated if the internal review or appeal is expected to take longer to complete.
Ready to lodge your internal review or appeal?
To request an internal review or appeal for Decision 1:
If you have been advised you are not prioritised for the RHP (Decision 1), you can submit and elect for an internal review or appeal at the link below.
To request an internal review or appeal for Decisions 2, 3 or 4:
If you have received a Letter of Offer and want an internal review or to appeal Decisions 2, 3 or 4, please advise your Case Manager who will link your internal review or appeal form to your application through Smarty Grants for you to complete and submit.
Lodge an internal review or appeal
Please note, your submission, even if you elect for an Internal Review will have a prefix identification number of RHPAPPEAL.
Internal Review and Appeals Policy Frequently Asked Questions
Why has the Appeals Policy changed?
The NSW Reconstruction Authority has enhanced policies and process following community feedback. Some of these changes include:
- homeowners now have 90 days to request an internal review or lodge an appeal
- renaming the ‘Comments’ process to ‘Internal Review’.
The new policy is now available. The enhanced policy:
- provides clarity on the differences between an internal review and an appeal
- confirms timeframes
- outlines the role and membership of the Independent Appeals Panel.
Are you removing the ways in which people can appeal?
No. The NSW Reconstruction Authority’s internal review and appeals process still has two parts:
- an internal review where a homeowner’s comments or additional information are considered by the NRRC internally, and
- an appeal where a homeowner’s additional information, corrected information or individual or exceptional circumstances are heard by an independent Appeals Panel.
Both processes can result in either the original RHP decision being upheld, or the decision being changed.
Homeowners can choose to submit a request for internal review or an appeal. An internal review does not have to be completed for a homeowner to lodge an appeal.
I have an appeal underway – will it be impacted?
No. We are committed to progressing appeals and responding to comments (internal review) already submitted.
If you have an appeal underway, it will continue to progress through its process.
The NSW Reconstruction Authority aims to finalise internal reviews and appeals within 45 days of receipt.
However, due to volume and complexity, some internal reviews and appeals may take longer than others to complete.
The Authority will keep homeowners updated if the internal review or appeal is expected to take longer to complete.
Can I request an internal review or lodge an appeal when I am notified by phone of my RHP priority status or do I need to wait for my email?
Homeowners do not need to wait for the email about their RHP status but can request an internal review or lodge an appeal when they receive the phone call about their RHP status.
For more information please see the Appeals Process Policy (PDF 177.62KB).
Contact
For assistance, please contact one of our case managers via email resilienthomesprogram@nrrc.nsw.gov.au or phone 1800 844 085. You can also visit one of pop-up locations.