Rent and rent arrears
What to do if you can't pay your rent
You need to pay your rent on time every week. If you fall behind
with your rent payments or get into difficulties paying your rent,
don't ignore the problem.
Contact your housing officer for advice
and to reach an agreement on repayment. We will help you as much as
we can.
It is important to be open and honest with us about your
circumstances so we can help you deal with the debt while it is
small. We can arrange for you to pay it over a short period of
time. We will offer you advice about claiming housing benefit which
can prevent you from running up a large debt.
Paying your rent is not a matter of choice. Your rent pays for
the services you expect to receive such as repairs to your home.
When you refuse to pay your rent we will take action to recover the
debt and we will evict you if you persistently fail to pay your
rent.
Last year we evicted 147 tenants because they did not pay their
rent. Don't let this happen to you.
If you don't pay your
rent:
• You will receive letters explaining that you are behind
with your rent
• A housing offer will contact you by visiting or phoning
you to discuss the arrears and make an agreement to clear them
.
• If you do not reduce your arrears, we will serve a
'notice of seeking possession' on you, which is the first stage in
the court process. The notice explains that you will have four
weeks to contact us and arrange to pay before the matter will be
sent to court.
• If you receive a notice of seeking possession, it does
not necessarily mean you will be going to court. If you make an
arrangement to pay and keep to it, we will not go ahead with the
legal action.
• If the matter is referred to court, we can ask for an
order for you to pay, or in extreme cases gain possession of your
home. We will also ask the judge to award us costs for taking this
action which you will be expected to pay.
• If you break the court order, we will write to you and
ask you to come to an interview with a senior officer to discuss
your situation.
• If you do not deal with the problem at this stage we
will apply for an eviction warrant. You will need to get immediate
advice from your local housing office.
When to pay your rent.
How to pay your rent.
Check your balance.