Housing

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Housing and Council Tax Benefit

• Housing and Council Tax Benefit
• General Information
• Am I Eligible for Housing Benefit?
• Local Housing Allowance
• The Verification Framework
• How Much Benefit Will I Receive?
• How do I appeal?
• Housing Benefit for Working Age claimants
• New Tax Credits
• Information for Landlords
• Housing Association Tenants
• Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
• Housing/Council Tax Benefit for Pensioners
• What is Pension Credit?
• How will the Pension Credit affect my benefit?
• Council Tax Benefits

Contact Details

• Council Tax and Housing/Council Tax Benefits Helpline
  0845 302 3200

Housing Services in Bexley

Housing Benefit

How will the Pension Credit affect my Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit?

Some of the rules about Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit claims made by pensioners have been changed to make sure that the value of the extra money awarded in Pension Credits is not lost due to reductions in Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit.

Some of the rules have also been changed to make the scheme less intrusive for pensioners. For instance, from 6 October 2003 most pensioners no longer have to re-apply for Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit every year.

If you already receive Housing and / or Council Tax Benefit

You do not need to make a new Housing and Council Tax Benefit Claim. The Pension Service will send details of your Pension Credit entitlement to the Council's Housing and Council Tax Benefit Service.

If you are entitled to Guarantee Credit or Guarantee Credit and Savings Credit

Those entitled to Guarantee Credit normally qualify for full Housing and Council Tax Benefit. However there are exceptions to this rule when full Housing and Council Tax Benefit may not be paid such as:

• When other adults live in the home (except a partner or carer)
• If the rent charged is too high
• If you only receive the Savings Credit or are not entitled to the Pension Credit, the Council will work out your Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit by taking into account the income and capital that you have (including the Savings Credit).

If you are entitled to Savings Credit only

If you only receive the Savings Credit you will not normally be able to claim either Housing or Council Tax Benefit if the total value of your savings and investments is more than £16,000. There are, however, exceptions to this capital limit rule and you should contact us for further advice if you require more information. If you receive the Guarantee Credit, this capital limit will not apply.

Changes in your circumstances

If you are receiving Pension Credits, then you will have been told to report most changes in your circumstances to the Pension Service. However, if you receive Pension Credits there are some changes in your circumstances that you MUST still tell the Council's Benefits Office about. These are:

If you are renting a property you must tell us about changes to your tenancy for example:

• if your rent increases or decreases
• the terms of your tenancy change
• your tenancy ends, etc.

You must tell us about the following changes:

• where you or your partner are going to be absent from your home if it's likely to be over 13 weeks
• you must tell us if you or your partner are admitted to hospital
• you must tell us if the membership of your household changes
• you must tell us if your Child Tax Credit changes
• you must tell us if your capital increase over £16,000

If you are not sure about whether to report a change in circumstances to the Benefits Office, please contact us for advice immediately.

Once you have told us about a change in your circumstances the Council will look at your Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit claim to check:

• whether a re-assessment is required
• from what date your Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit claim needs to be re-assessed.

Your Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit claim will not always be reassessed from the time the change in your circumstances took place. The rules within Housing and Council Tax Benefit that tell us when to recalculate benefit from have been adjusted to make sure that:

• Changes that cause us to award more Housing and Council Tax Benefit result in as much extra benefit as possible being awarded.
• The effect of reductions in Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit will be delayed.

More help and advice

If you are not sure about whether to report a change in circumstances to the Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit section, please contact us for advice immediately. If you would like to talk to someone about how much Housing and Council Tax Benefit you are or might be entitled to, please contact us as we may be able to send a Visiting Officer out to see you. If you think you may be entitled to Housing and Council Tax Benefit you should make a claim immediately.