Universal credit housing increase, advice welcome

2

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  • life
    life Online Community Member Posts: 526 Empowering
    No was perfect. Just got back to me and said, That's great in order to get your claim corrected you will need to redeclare your housing again so we can correctly verify your exemption from the shared room rate.
  • life
    life Online Community Member Posts: 526 Empowering
    How's this done and does it mean I'll get backdated pay if I do redeclare?
  • calcotti
    calcotti Online Community Member Posts: 10,001 Championing
    edited June 2022
    life said:
    No was perfect. Just got back to me and said, That's great in order to get your claim corrected you will need to redeclare your housing again so we can correctly verify your exemption from the shared room rate.
    Presumably on your existing statements each statement shows your rent of £600 and then says something about your hep with rent being restricted to £400. Can you confirm what those previous statements show.

    Presumably you verified the housing costs when you applied for UC.
  • calcotti
    calcotti Online Community Member Posts: 10,001 Championing
    edited June 2022
    posted in error so deleted
  • life
    life Online Community Member Posts: 526 Empowering
    At this moment in time I've had to change my circumstances and have to upload all my housing documents again lol I honestly don't get it at this point. My landlord will be sending me my tenancy agreement and letter showing my address tomorrow.
  • calcotti
    calcotti Online Community Member Posts: 10,001 Championing
    There's another thread where someone in a similar situation has been asked to do the same - but i don't understand why.

    In your circumstances I would have posted something along the lines of:
    I am confused and do not understand why I need to redeclare my housing costs. My previous statements all show my housing costs (which you verified when I claimed) which are then reduced by the LHA you used.
    My housing costs have not changed. I am simply asking you to apply the correct LHA rate when calculating the housing element.
    I am therefore not clear why you would need to re verify the costs.

    However if you've gone ahead and done what they've asked hopefully that will get it sorted.
  • life
    life Online Community Member Posts: 526 Empowering
    Yes I actually said my full amount is being paid now and is showing in my UC statement, but was told it has to be done this way. 

    I have to upload my documents by 21st June 22 or I don't get paid next month's rent lol lucky I've got the landlord coming round to hand me some recent documents or I don't know what I would have done because I had zilch to upload.

    Also was told to call in the next 5 days if I think I've got an under or over payment that needs to be sorted and that I'd have to have a good excuse 😐 or in them lines to why I didnt inform them earlier. Again thanks @calcotti 👍
  • calcotti
    calcotti Online Community Member Posts: 10,001 Championing
    edited June 2022
    You have been underpaid. If you reported that you were getting Daily Living PIP when you claimed UC then it was their job to apply the correct LHA. The reason you haven’t asked about an underpayment previously is because you were not previously aware of the rules around LHA - it’s not your job to know them.

    Still don’t know what has prompted them to suddenly apply the correct amount.
  • life
    life Online Community Member Posts: 526 Empowering
    Yes exactly right. I'll find out in the next few days what will happen next. 👍
  • life
    life Online Community Member Posts: 526 Empowering
    I called this morning and asked for any update and was told that pip made an error and just recently let UC know I was getting paid it. The transitional payment stopped because I'm getting more housing and I'm better off payment wise. He was very nice on the phone and made clear that it was no fault of my own and a glitch/error in the system which was just brought to light. He said there reviewing to see how much I was underpaid if anything ( seems very likely I am owed money) and will update my past statements in due course. 

    I'll be waiting for a letter to let me know when everythings been processed.

    Thanks again for all the help in the matter 👍

    Will update if anything changes.
  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Online Community Member Posts: 64,463 Championing
    life said:
     The transitional payment stopped because I'm getting more housing

    Which shouldn't have happened, if they had paid you the correct amount of housing element from the start of your claim. You maybe better off because of the housing element increase but if the TP hadn't eroded completely you'd receive even more money.
  • life
    life Online Community Member Posts: 526 Empowering
    I'm going to bring that point up the next time I speak to them , thanks 👍
  • calcotti
    calcotti Online Community Member Posts: 10,001 Championing
    You should definitely get the SDPTE reinstated. Had you just been awarded PIP resulting in an increase in the housing element then it would be correct that this would end the SDPTE. However, as the housing element should have been higher from the start of the award no change in that element has taken place. You should therefore still have some SDPTE left. (It will have reduced a bit from the initial amount due to the increase in the standard allowance and LCWRA elements that took place in April last year and this.)
  • life
    life Online Community Member Posts: 526 Empowering
    I just got a phone call from pip saying I've been awarded pip again with higher pay for some reason ( I'm not complaining lol) could that be a reason why transitional payment stopped. Maybe a cap on how much I can get paid?
  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Online Community Member Posts: 64,463 Championing
    edited June 2022
    life said:
    I just got a phone call from pip saying I've been awarded pip again with higher pay for some reason ( I'm not complaining lol) could that be a reason why transitional payment stopped. Maybe a cap on how much I can get paid?

    No, your PIP won't affect your UC in a bad way. You're not affected by the benefit cap either so there's no limit on the benefits you receive. See link. https://www.gov.uk/benefit-cap/when-youre-not-affected

  • life
    life Online Community Member Posts: 526 Empowering
    Universal credit updated my statement and the transitional payment will continue to be paid plus I'll get backpay from march last year.

    I had to upload my tenancy agreement and a letter from my landlord and as soon as that was verified they updated everything.

    Thanks for all the help @calcotti and @poppy123456 for all the replies has helped a lot 👍
  • calcotti
    calcotti Online Community Member Posts: 10,001 Championing
    Excellent result.
  • life
    life Online Community Member Posts: 526 Empowering
    Thanks @calcotti 👍
  • Sandy_123
    Sandy_123 Scope Member Posts: 62,928 Championing
    Well done, I wish I had any luck, they havnt put new increase in rent on from April.  so statements showing old rent, my messages unanswered. 
  • SueHeath
    SueHeath Online Community Member Posts: 12,388 Championing
    Really pleased for you @life love hearing good news