Aminah’s story
CHAC prevents eviction of single mother in private rented sector accommodation
“A section 8 notice is a notice for repossession under section 8 of the Housing Act 1988. Only certain reasons for repossession are accepted under section 8, including rent arrears, damage to the property and nuisance, but the notice must follow the legally correct procedure. Discretionary Housing Payment is an additional payment from the local authority to provide additional help to those in most need.”
Aminah, a single parent with one dependent child, was an assured shorthold tenant of a private landlord who used agents to manage the property. Her monthly rent was £800 and she couldn’t keep up with the rent. With arrears of over £1,200 and her landlord had applied to court for possession following a section 8 Notice. A suspended possession order together with an order for legal costs were expected when the case came to court in September 2017.
Before the case came to court CHAC helped Aminah to increase her housing benefit from £90 to £155 a week, and receive backdated housing benefit of £475. This, together with Discretionary Housing Payment (DHP) awards of £1,280, cleared all of her rent arrears before her court hearing. CHAC also negotiated with the landlord’s agents to request the court to make an order adjourning generally with liberty to restore with no order for the landlord’s costs which had been assessed by the landlord’s solicitors at £1309. The court made this order in October 2017 and so Aminah and her young daughter were not evicted.