Universal credit and LHA rate increases

mustbemad

Hi, does anyone know if your housing allowance on universal credit can be updated if the LHA rate is increased or are you stuck with the rate that was in place when you put in your application? Our rent is higher than the LHA rate so our allowance is lower than what we pay, I just wondered if this is something I should be reporting?

Mbm x

calcotti

mustbemad wrote: »

Hi, does anyone know if your housing allowance on universal credit can be updated if the LHA rate is increased or are you stuck with the rate that was in place when you put in your application? Our rent is higher than the LHA rate so our allowance is lower than what we pay, I just wondered if this is something I should be reporting?

Mbm x

Whichever is lower of the LHA or actual rent is used to calculate the UC housing element. The LHA rate is usually less than the actual rent so there is then a shortfall. Depending on circumstances it may be possible to obtain a temporary Discretionary Housing Payment from the local authority to make up the difference.

The housing element should change with the LHA rate if this is what has been used to calculate it. However I think the revised rate will only be applied from the first assessment period which starts after the rate has changed. If you know the LHA rate has changed but it has not been applied to your award you should certainly raise this with the DWP. The housing element will be 52 x LHA weekly rate / 12.

mustbemad

Thanks calcotti, we claimed UC in March, in April the rate went up a little bit, our assessment date is the 14th so really it should have been amended in May. I'll send them a message, thanks again.

Mbm x

huckster

Don't register any changed info via your journal.

You have to report a change in circumstances on your UC home page, where you live and what it costs. Tell them about any rent change.

Always report changes online through your UC claim and if UC wants you to take further actions such as taking documents to a Job Centre, they will set you a to-do task. You can only report changes from date of change or as soon as possible afterwards. It won't let you report changes in advance of the date of change.

calcotti

huckster wrote: »

Don't register any changed info via your journal.

You have to report a change in circumstances on your UC home page, where you live and what it costs. Tell them about any rent change.

Always report changes online through your UC claim and if UC wants you to take further actions such as taking documents to a Job Centre, they will set you a to-do task. You can only report changes from date of change or as soon as possible afterwards. It won't let you report changes in advance of the date of change.

This doesn’t appear to be about any change of circumstances, just a query about whether the correct rate of LHA is being used to calculate the housing element.

huckster

calcotti wrote: »

This doesn’t appear to be about any change of circumstances, just a query about whether the correct rate of LHA is being used to calculate the housing element.

UC will have the correct LHA rate based on the address/post code provided. So the new rate should always be applied in the correct assessment period, if the housing was being paid at the LHA rate.

Rents quite often get revised by Landlords in April every year and I just wondered whether this had been reported or not.

tomtom256

I don't think all areas have had an increase though, so I would check the published list at gov.uk.

[Deleted User]

“The new rate should always be applied”

Come on this is UC we are talking about, anything could happen.