Overpayments of Housing Benefit

An overpayment is where you have been paid more Housing Benefit than you are entitled to. 

Why do overpayments occur? 

We may have received some information that means we have to review the amount of benefit you receive. If the change means that the amount of benefit goes down and we have already paid you the higher amount there will be an overpayment. 

They happen for various reasons. Here are some examples:

• You may have forgotten to tell us that your income has increased, for example, you have had a pay rise or your tax credit award or pension amount has changed.
• Somebody may have moved into or out of your home.
• You may have moved out of your home and not told us.
• You may have started work or changed jobs.
• If you have other adults living with you, their circumstances may have changed.

You must tell us about any changes and not rely on anyone else to do it for you. Even if you have told the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) about your change in circumstances, you must still let us know and not leave it to the DWP to tell us. 

How will I know if I have been overpaid?

We will send you a notification letter giving you the full details of the overpayment. This notification letter will tell you why the overpayment happened, the amount and period of the overpayment. It will also tell you how we will recover the overpayment and what to do if you disagree with the overpayment. 

Further information is available in the Housing Benefit Overpayments leaflet.