Your housing benefit will be paid directly to you, not your landlord.
Your benefit is for you to pay your rent with. If you do not use your benefit to pay your rent, your landlord may take you to court to try to evict you and you may lose your home.
If you think that you will have difficulty paying your rent if your benefit is sent directly to you, we may be able to pay it to your landlord. We may also be able to pay your landlord if this would help you secure or retain a tenancy. This is called a ‘safeguard payment’.
If you fall into rent arrears of eight weeks or more, we will normally pay your Housing Benefit directly to your landlord.
For more information about safeguard payments, download our
safeguard policy (PDF 107 KB).
To apply for a safeguard payment, please download the
safeguard payment request form (PDF 110 KB). Send your completed form to Benefits, The Forum, Marlowes, Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, HP1 1DN.