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I recently represented a Housing Cooperative in a dispute over a £45,000 Housing Benefit Overpayment. The Co-op and its elderly tenants had appealed the Council decision to hold them responsible for the sum, to a First-tier Tribunal. A hearing was held but had to be adjourned because the Judge…

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DWP’s Director General, Neil Couling, was reported last week, as stating – “Many confused families will receive less than they had hoped for from Universal Credit, certainly in their first payment” – due to the fact, when calculating Universal Credit most forms of earned income (e.g. wages, statutory…

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The Department of Work & Pensions Minister The Rt Hon Thérèse Coffey MP issued a statement yesterday, after the department, local MPs, MSPs and the media had been inundated with a deluge of complaints from claimants, who had lodged online claims, but then had waited literally…

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I was asked to intervene yesterday, in yet another DWP Overpayment of Universal Credit demand, where DWP had decided to pursue my landlord client, on the basis:

“As the tenant’s landlord, you received the monthly housing costs, on his behalf, and so could reasonably have known of the tenant’s…

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If you’re a Private Sector Landlord or Letting Agent, ordinarily providing accommodation to tenants claiming Housing Benefit or Universal Credit schemes you should be aware that from 1st April 2020 the Local Housing Allowance rates have now been published incorporating the Government commitment to pay at the 30th…

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I watched the Work & Pensions Committee this morning hoping to pick up the latest news on Coronavirus and the measures being put in place to assist those affected by the pandemic. In attendance was the latest Secretary of State Dr Theresa Coffey, and her Permanent Secretary answering questions…

Hi Everyone

I hope you’re all well and coping with all the chaos around us.

DWP has just announced that it intends to suspend all planned reviews and reassessments of claims for the next three months, mainly to allow its staff to cope with the deluge of claims and…

Questions & Answers

I have a query regarding the current situation with Coronavirus and self-isolation.

We have a tenant who has been advised to self-isolate for 4 weeks but may extend to 12 due to underlying health issues.  He has been, until yesterday, in full time…

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In recent days an increasing number of my SRS client base have asked if I could point them in the direction of any help there may be on Government websites or elsewhere, that could help tenants, that are already or most likely to be affected by the Coronavirus,…

Hi John

Firstly, your approach of trying to help tenants by reassuring them their homes are under no threat and trying to source helpful information is admirable and exactly what I’d expect most responsible landlords to do in this chaotic and worrying time.

Good tenants don’t become bad tenants overnight,…