99Secretary to refer claim to Commissioner for decision

1. On receiving a claim for payment from a lead provider, the Secretary must refer the claim to the Commissioner.

2. The Commissioner may—

3. approve the claim or any part of it; or
4. defer payment of all or part of the claim in order that the deferred part may be examined; or
5. decline payment of the claim or any part of it.

6. A payment may be deferred and a claim, or part of a claim, examined if—

7. the claim or part of the claim appears to the Commissioner to be excessive in light of the Secretary's standard rates for payment or the Commissioner's experience with comparable claims; or
8. an aided person has requested an examination of the cost of services under section 90.

9. The Commissioner must decline—

10. any claim to the extent that it exceeds the maximum grant specified in the grant; and
11. where a claim or part of a claim is for, or is determined by the Commissioner to be for, work of a kind for which a fee is prescribed by regulations pursuant to section 114(1)(ca) or authorised pursuant to section 114(1)(cc), so much of that claim as exceeds the fee so prescribed or authorised; and
12. any claim to the extent to which it is for a disbursement of a type not approved for payment by the Commissioner; and
13. any claim to the extent to which it is for a disbursement incurred in relation to a report or statement (whether oral or written) of a person called by an offender under section 27 of the Sentencing Act 2002; and
14. any claim or any part of a claim that has been determined to be excessive or inaccurate by an examination under subsection (2); and

16. The Commissioner may decline any claim that was not made in accordance with the time frame referred to in section 98.