help with rent

midlandsguy

Hi, im looking for some advice, i get dla middle rate and i live in a privately rented property, the council pay most of the rent but theres a £50 shortfall i have to pay myself, is there any way i can get the council to pay the full amount? If i could get them to pay this at least id be able to have the heating on

Ames

There's a discretionary payment, I got it for a while when my claim was being sorted out and not covering my rent.

Have you made sure you're getting everything else you're entitled to, and have you checked out your energy supplier to see if their social tariff's cheaper?

nanokitten

most councils have this facility for discretionary shortfall but it is normally means tested so you will have to have a fananicial assesment. Definatly worth applying for.
The housing benefit system has changed so now all rents are calculated on the basis of a rent adjustment (cant remeber the proper name) which is worked out over quite a large area (so if you live in a desirable area you have probably lost out) plus the average local rent plus how many rooms you are entitled to then take the lowest (so if you rent is very cheap for your area you may still not get it as if you lived in a small isolated village out of town you could get it cheaper).
I was told by the rent officer that the only way to challenge this is to go to court.
They also will not take a medical condition into account when they calculate how many rooms you need etc (although you can get a discount on your council tax).