Parliamentary Search

Written question asked by Iqbal Mohamed (Independent (affiliation)) on Thursday, 11 June 2026, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 15 June 2026. It was answered by Stephen Timms (Labour) on Friday, 19 June 2026 on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions.

Housing Benefit and Universal Credit: Landlords

Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to ensure the verification of the accuracy of service costs covered by both Housing Benefit and Universal Credit when paid directly to a landlord.

Answer

Housing costs support is available in Housing Benefit or Universal Credit to those who have a liability to pay rent and eligible service charges for the home they live in.

The verification process is designed to establish the costs that the claimant has a liability for. The role of the Department is to determine the level of the liability as set out in the tenancy agreement, and to meet those costs in accordance with the Housing Benefit Regulations 2006 and the Universal Credit Regulations 2013.

The Department does not collect data about payments made for services that were either not provided or were billed above the actual cost incurred by the landlord.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
9257
Session
2026-27
Grouped for answer
Yes
Subjects
Costs Housing benefit Landlords Payments Private rented housing Universal credit
Contains statistics
Yes
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk