Local authority refusal to pay housing benefit calendar monthly

You can use this letter if your client:

• lives in privately rented accommodation if over pension age, or exempt accommodation if under pension age
• receives housing benefit (HB)
• is required to pay rent calendar monthly 
• has their HB paid 4 weekly, and they have rent arrears as a result
• has asked for their HB to be paid calendar monthly and this has been refused because HB can only be paid weekly, 2 weekly or 4 weekly in accordance with the local authority's policy

• Under reg 92 HB Regs / reg 73 SPA HB Regs the local authority is given the discretion to make rent allowance payments at intervals of one month where the claimant's rent liability is incurred monthly and where payment of the rent allowance is made directly to the landlord.
• How the discretion under reg. 92(4) / reg 73(4) should be exercised is set out in the Housing Benefit Guidance Manual Chapter A6 and includes "You must consider the reasonable needs of the claimant when deciding the frequency of payments".
• The Council has the discretion to make HB payments calendar monthly to the claimant’s landlord where theirs rent liability is incurred calendar monthly, refusal to do so because council policy is to pay 1, 2 or 4 weekly and without consideration of the claimant's circumstances, unlawfully fetters the discretion available and is in breach of guidance. 

Information about your client:

• name
• address
• national insurance number
• date of birth

Background facts, such as:

• family situation
• housing details, including when tenancy started, contractual monthly rent, and history of rent account including arrears
• any health difficulties or disabilities your client has
• what financial hardship your client is experiencing as a result of the schedule of payments, details of any rent arrears and any risk to their tenancy; has possession action been started?
• any risk that your client will be unable to afford to pay for their housing, heating or food, any need to use food banks
• any detriment to your client's health and welfare or to any of their family members' health and welfare

Information about the decision:

• how, when, and with what evidence did your client tell the council that rent is due calendar monthly
• how and when the council responded

We've created this guide to help you successfully use our judicial review pre-action letter templates: Guide to using CPAG's judicial review pre-action letter templates

Once you've finished your letter, please email it to us at: [email protected] before you send it to the lawyers acting for DWP/HMRC/your local authority. We'll try to reply as quickly as possible and will do so within 7 days.