Can the Council withhold Housing benefit?

[RachelM]

Thank you for reading this. I am in need of some advice concerning housing benefit.

I will try to explain the best I can.

I am in the process of moving house, I am moving from one private Landlord to another.

I will be totally honest, I have roughly £4000 in rent arrears. I have been making regular payments for the past year roughly, plus money off of the arrears.

Apart from this months, and last months rent. This is because there is no heating in my property at the moment, there is no hot water, and there is a continuous leak coming from the toilet upstairs. He tried to demand that I get out within 2 days, with no court action. I just want to add that I have a 5 year old child too.

I involved environment health, this made him quite furious and he has spoken to my Mother (Even though I am a 32 year old woman) demanding that she take me and my child in, so that I am out of the property. He is not doing the work that is required, so we are in a bad situation at the moment, no hot water and no heating.

I have secured another property, I am due to make the final payment off of the first months rent/deposit tomorrow, then I should get my official moving in date.

What is worrying me at the moment is that the man from environmental health told me that the council might not pay the housing benefit, because I have arrears here.

So if my Landlord contacted the council and told them about the arrears, is there a possibility that the council might not pay housing benefit on my new home?

Even if he doesn't contact them, will the council contact him to ask about rent arrears? And the fact that I haven't paid the past 2 months rent?

The landlord has no respect for the law, he doesn't do gas safety checks, he doesn't do repairs, he didn't have a fire alarm installed in the property - I could go on.

Any advice or help with this would be very much appreciated at the moment.


Thank you,
Rachel.

[warwick65]

Re: Can the Council withhold Housing benefit?

Are you in a universal credit area ?

If so , and I am not certain, they might see it as a new claim and might force you to apply for UC

Otherwise
[MENTION=87380]Diana M[/MENTION]
[MENTION=49370]Kati[/MENTION] - not sure who else knows about these things

[RachelM]

Re: Can the Council withhold Housing benefit?

Hi Warwick,

I am in a Universal credit area. I am not sure if it will make any differences to whether or not they will want me to claim universal credit, but I am a registered carer to my 5 year old child, he is disabled.

I am not claiming any type of unemployment benefit, as I am on carers allowance.

[warwick65]

Re: Can the Council withhold Housing benefit?

Sorry I can’t help more- UC is a mystery to me and am trying to navigate it at the moment after my council decided to stop my HB and ESA screwed up by discontinuing my claim a couple of years ago when they needn’t have

Hopefully Kati will know who to take for real help

[RachelM]

Re: Can the Council withhold Housing benefit?

Thank you Warwick, I hope you get your situation sorted out soon too x

[Kati]

Re: Can the Council withhold Housing benefit?

Hopefully Kati will know who to take for real help

RESPECTFUL BENEFITS
or
WELFARE CENTRAL
??

[Wylderose]

Re: Can the Council withhold Housing benefit?

Apart from this months, and last months rent. This is because there is no heating in my property at the moment, there is no hot water, and there is a continuous leak coming from the toilet upstairs. He tried to demand that I get out within 2 days, with no court action. I just want to add that I have a 5 year old child too.

I involved environment health, this made him quite furious and he has spoken to my Mother (Even though I am a 32 year old woman) demanding that she take me and my child in, so that I am out of the property. He is not doing the work that is required, so we are in a bad situation at the moment, no hot water and no heating.

You say that you have not paid the last 2 month's rent - if you are paid Housing Benefit directly by the council, then the council expects you to pay the landlord, irrespective of the state of the property because you have a rent liability - a legal obligation to pay rent to your landlord. The state of the property is for departments like Environmental Health and Housing Standards to sort out. The fact that you have withheld rent may have aggravated the situation.

That said, any landlord who allows any one to live in a property where there is no hot water and no heating is sailing very close to having their property declared "uninhabitable". They are breaking the law by renting a property in this state - hence the anger because you contacted Environmental Health.

What is worrying me at the moment is that the man from environmental health told me that the council might not pay the housing benefit, because I have arrears here.

So if my Landlord contacted the council and told them about the arrears, is there a possibility that the council might not pay housing benefit on my new home?

This is not correct. The fact that you have arrears with your previous landlord will not mean that the council will not pay your new tenancy. What it will mean is that (I assume you are in excess of 8 weeks arrears) the housing benefit on your new property may end up being paid directly to your new landlord. No the council does not contact landlords to ask about rent arrears when considering your new claim

The only time that the council will contact a landlord to ask about rent arrears is if:
a) The landlord asks to have payment made directly to him due to rent arrears - in this case they have to prove it.
b) Your rent is being paid to the landlord due to excess of 8 weeks arrears and you wish the payments to be made to you - then you and the landlord would have to prove that the rent is not in arrears.

I am in a Universal credit area. I am not sure if it will make any differences to whether or not they will want me to claim universal credit, but I am a registered carer to my 5 year old child, he is disabled.

I am not claiming any type of unemployment benefit, as I am on carers allowance.

If you area single parent with a disabled child, I don't understand why you are trying to live on Carer's Allowance. If you are in a UC area that accepts UC claims from parents with children, then you can claim UC and your UC would be reduced by the amount of your CA. The DWP would pay your HBen

If you are in an area where they don't as yet accept families with children (disabled or not), then you would be able to claim a legacy benefit (Income Support) as you would not be expected to be available for work and the council would pay your HBen.