Housing benefit reinstated, clearing tenant’s rent arrears
CHAC Case study
Angela’s story
Angela accrued nearly £1,700 in rent arrears after her housing benefit was incorrectly cancelled by Canterbury City Council.
Angela was a secure council tenant, living with her partner and three dependent children. As her partner was self-employed, Angela was required to submit his self-employed financial details to the Council’s Benefits Department every year. Although Angela had done this, she had not correctly listed her partner’s allowable business expenses. As a result, the Council decided her partner’s income from his business was too high for them to qualify for any housing benefit and cancelled her weekly payments of £93.
How CHAC helped
Angela approached us for advice. We helped her seek a review of the Council’s decision and provided proof of her partner’s allowable business expenses to the Council. However, the Council miscalculated the figures once again and reiterated that Angela was not entitled to housing benefit.
The outcome
We helped Angela request a further review of this decision and contacted the Housing Benefit Payments Officer dealing with her claim to advocate on her behalf. By carefully discussing her partner’s expenses, the Payments Officer finally agreed that Angela was entitled to housing benefit. Angela’s weekly housing benefit payments were reinstated at the correct (and higher) rate of £107 from when they had been stopped, enabling her to clear her rent arrears in full.