Housing Benefit - change of circumstances

If you get Housing Benefit you have a legal duty to tell us about any changes in your circumstances that may affect your benefit. You must tell us in writing, immediately, even if you have not got the relevant documents yet.

A change of circumstance is an event that changes your entitlement to Housing Benefit, for example, a change in income or savings, or someone moving into or out of your household.

Changes you need to tell us about

You must tell us about any change in your circumstances as soon as possible. You must tell us in writing, but if possible you should also phone us so that we can advise you if we need extra information from you. If you do not tell us we may pay you too much Housing Benefit and you may have to pay back the overpayment.

You must tell us about any change even if you have told another agency, for example the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) or the Pension Service.

Below are some examples of the types of change you must tell us about; this is not a complete list:

• Any changes to your rent or conditions of tenancy.
• If anyone in your household starts or stops work.
• The date you start or stop receiving Income Support, income-related Employment and Support Allowance or income-based Jobseeker's Allowance.
• Any change to any award of benefit or income such as contribution-based Jobseeker's Allowance, contributory-based Employment and Support Allowance, Tax Credits, Incapacity Benefit, earnings or pensions and so on.
• Any change in the income of anyone else in your household.
• If you stop receiving Child Benefit for a child.
• A change in the services your landlord provides.
• If you change address, even to another room in the same house.
• Absence from your home for more than 13 weeks.
• Someone moving into the property.
• Someone moving out of the property, including people who go into hospital or prison.
• Changes to non-dependants.
• The date a child or young person leaves school or college.
• Any change in savings and investments.
• Any change in the childcare amounts you pay.

You may be entitled to extended payments if you are starting work or increasing your hours.

We will need to see evidence of any change

If you are in doubt, tell us anyway.

If you are entitled to more Housing Benefit because of a change in your circumstances

If you delay telling us about a change that would increase your Housing Benefit entitlement we may not be able to backdate the change to when it happened. Instead we may only increase your entitlement from when you tell us. If you delay telling us you may lose out.

If you are entitled to less Housing Benefit because of a change in your circumstances

If you delay telling us about a change that would decrease your entitlement you will have been overpaid. If you have been overpaid, you may have to pay it back.

If you don't tell us about changes when they happen you may be committing Housing Benefit fraud. In these cases we may prosecute you.

The sooner you tell us, the less chance there is of you being overpaid Housing Benefit which you may have to pay back. You can ask us to suspend paying your claim until we reassess it, if the change is likely to reduce your Housing Benefit.

How to tell us about a change

You need to tell us in writing or complete an application form. You will also need to provide evidence of the change .

E-mail:

Benefits@thanet.gov.uk

Tel: 01843 577552

from 9am to 5.30pm. 

Fax: 01843 577532

or Visit our offices