-
Benefits - How Housing Benefit is Paid
Benefits - How Housing Benefit is Paid
How Housing Benefit is paid
If you are a council tenant, Housing Benefit is paid weekly directly to your rent account.
If you are a Housing Association tenant, we may pay you or your landlord four weekly in arrears, direct to a bank account (either belonging to you or the Housing Association) by BACS.
If you are a private tenant and your claim started before 7 April 2008 Housing Benefit is usually paid four weekly in arrears, direct to your bank account (by BACS). It can be paid to you or your landlord. We can’t pay anyone else apart from you, your landlord or your landlord’s agents. You should note that the Council will pay your landlord directly if:
- You ask us to pay your landlord
- You are 8 weeks or more in arrears
- If, in the opinion of the Council, it is in the best interests of the tenant.
- The landlord has to sign a "payment acceptance form" in order for payments to be made direct to them. You can download a form using the links at the bottom of the page.
If you are a private tenant and your claim started on or after 7 April 2008 you will be assessed under the new scheme. This scheme is called Local Housing Allowance (LHA). Benefit will normally be paid direct to you and it will be your responsibility to pay your rent to your landlord. You cannot simply choose to have your benefit paid direct to your landlord. LHA will normally be paid direct into a bank account. This means you will need to open a bank account if you do not have one already. You can then arrange for your bank or building society to pay your rent to your landlord automatically. Please see the link at the bottom of the page for more information about LHA.
If you feel that you will experience difficulty in paying your rent to your landlord if we pay you directly, you may be able to ask us to pay your Housing Benefit direct to your landlord. Please complete an application to pay landlord direct form from the Related Documents. We will consider your circumstances and tell you in writing about our decision.
How often Housing Benefit is paid
You may be paid four weekly from the start date of your claim. You will not be paid on the same date every month. This is because a four weekly month (28 days) is less than a calendar month (28-31 days). If your landlord charges a monthly rent, he/she will usually expect you to make 12 monthly payments in advance in a one year period. If you claim and get Housing Benefit, you (or your landlord) will be paid 13 four weekly payments in a one year period. Please see the examples below.
If you make a new claim for Housing Benefit, and you rent from a private landlord, you may be paid calendar monthly. This means that your Housing Benefit will be paid directly to you on the 1st of every month.