Grieving dad of teen killed in head-on crash forced to pay BEDROOM TAX on son’s empty room
Terry Fannon was told the room was deemed 'spare' after Thomas , 18, died
THE grieving father of a teen killed in a horror head-on crash has been hit by the bedroom Tax on his dead son’s empty room.
Terry Fannon was left heartbroken when motorcyclist Thomas Hodson Fannon, 18, died after colliding with quad biker in October.
The room at his home in Denton, Tameside, remains untouched following the death of his son after he was hit by Sam Edge.
Edge, 20, was last week jailed for causing death by dangerous driving.
With Tom’s name on the wall and photographs of his beloved son on display, Terry has kept the bedroom just as it was - a shrine to his lost boy.
But the sentencing hearing at Manchester crown court last week heard how Mr Fannon had been paying Bedroom Tax on his son’s room.
This is despite Department of Work and Pensions rules which say a family should be given a year after a death before Bedroom Tax is imposed.
For Terry, 49, it meant he had to cope with deductions from his benefits at the same time as grieving for his son.
He told the M.E.N: “They knew my son was dead. I got a letter days after about the bedroom tax. I was in a trance afterwards I didn’t question it for a while.
“I feel sick. The room is still Tom’s, I’ve not changed it. But they said I had an extra room, it is just an extra worry.
"I can’t leave this house, I never can, it was Tom’s home and it’s all I have left of him."
A Tameside Council spokesman admitted they had made an error.
He added: “The spare room subsidy, also known as the ‘bedroom tax’, is a housing benefit policy brought in by the coalition government.
“Tameside council is required by law to administer the policy on behalf of the government, despite the effect it is having on families and our local communities.
“The regulations around the Bedroom Tax are set by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).
“When the council is told of changes in their circumstances by residents the necessary adjustments are made.
“Occasionally mistakes occurs. In this case a change in the amount of housing benefit reduction was made in error.
“As soon as we became aware of this a correction was made. Housing benefit is now being paid at the correct rate.
“Tameside council apologises for the error and any additional stress caused at an already difficult time.”