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Sub-letting in council accomodation - UC housing costs?
I have a client who lives in council accomodation. They are not on the tenancy agreement, though the council is aware they are there. They have tried to get themselves on the tenancy agreement, but the council won’t do it. They pay half of the housing costs in the flat, and the other tenant’s Housing Benefit only covers half the rent, as he stated that my client pays the other half. Can they get their housing costs covered by UC? What kind of documents will they need?
Thank you!
Assuming the Council tenant lives there, his/her HB should cover the full rent but some of the rent income from the lodger is taken into account. If the Council tenant is on DWP legacy means tested benefit, the rent income from the lodger should be taken into account by DWP but in my experience is often ignored because DWP don’t understand it. Splitting the rent in half is ludicrous: only one person is liable to pay it, the lodger is accounted for through the means test, not the eligible rent.
Can the lodger claim UC housing costs? Yes provided the licence/tenancy is on a commercial basis, not contrived etc. They will be entitled either to the shared accommodation LHA or, if aged 35+, the self-contained 1B LHA. It does not matter if these sums are higher than the Council rent payable by the main tenant - as I say, the income from the lodger is accounted for through the means test. If they are receiving more from the lodger than they pay to the Council, well then they will qualify for no HB or not very much HB - perfect.
Now ask me what happens if the Council tenant claims UC: hint - they want to look into that, they might be pleasantly surprised.
Are they a couple?
Are they a couple?
not a couple, no!
I have a client who lives in council accomodation. They are not on the tenancy agreement, though the council is aware they are there. They have tried to get themselves on the tenancy agreement, but the council won’t do it. They pay half of the housing costs in the flat, and the other tenant’s Housing Benefit only covers half the rent, as he stated that my client pays the other half. Can they get their housing costs covered by UC? What kind of documents will they need?
Thank you!
Worth adding that my client is paying rent in cash, so there is no paper trail of it. There is no tenancy agreement with them on it, and very little proof of them paying rent there (though the tenant is willing to write a letter testifying it)
Assuming the Council tenant lives there, his/her HB should cover the full rent but some of the rent income from the lodger is taken into account. If the Council tenant is on DWP legacy means tested benefit, the rent income from the lodger should be taken into account by DWP but in my experience is often ignored because DWP don’t understand it. Splitting the rent in half is ludicrous: only one person is liable to pay it, the lodger is accounted for through the means test, not the eligible rent.
Can the lodger claim UC housing costs? Yes provided the licence/tenancy is on a commercial basis, not contrived etc. They will be entitled either to the shared accommodation LHA or, if aged 35+, the self-contained 1B LHA. It does not matter if these sums are higher than the Council rent payable by the main tenant - as I say, the income from the lodger is accounted for through the means test. If they are receiving more from the lodger than they pay to the Council, well then they will qualify for no HB or not very much HB - perfect.
Now ask me what happens if the Council tenant claims UC: hint - they want to look into that, they might be pleasantly surprised.
Yes, strange to split the rent in half when one is liable tenant and other is lodger.
Yes, lodger can claim UC housing costs element.
As per CPAG handbook (Welfare Benefits and Tax Credits Handbook 2019/20, Part 2: Universal credit, Chapter 6: The housing costs element, 2. Liability for payments):
Your agreement can be legally enforceable even if it is not in writing. The fact that you made a firm promise to pay money to your landlord in return for your occupation of the property should be sufficient to show you are liable to pay rent and so allow you to qualify for a housing costs element. [R v Poole BC ex parte Ross [1995] 28 HLR 351 (QBD); R v Warrington BC ex parte Williams [1997] 29 HLR 872 (QBD)] If the DWP refuses to accept that you have a legal liability, apply for a revision or appeal.
In practice, DWP often insist on seeing some sort of contract or document. I’d be interested to hear whether this is a barrier to getting HCE included - do let me know about your case here: https://cpag.org.uk/policy-campaigns/early-warning-system
Yes, rental income from lodgers is ignored income in UC.