Your Rent Account FAQ

Below is a list of our most frequently asked questions regarding rent accounts.

1. I have lost my rent payment card - how do I get a replacement?
2. What are the different ways to pay?
3. How do I know how much rent to pay?
4. How often should I pay?
5. Help with paying your rent – Housing Benefit
6. How is the rent worked out?
7. What do the rent and service charges pay for?
8. Will I get notice if my rent is increased?
9. Responsibilities of joint tenants
10. How can I find out the balance of my account?
11. What happens if I don’t agree with the balance on my account?
12. What happens if I don’t pay my rent?
13. Paying rent for a garage

1. I have lost my rent payment card - how do I get a replacement?

Please contact your housing officer as soon as possible and they will order a replacement card for you. As this may take a few days to be issued to you, they will also let you know how to pay your rent whilst you are waiting.

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2. What are the different ways to pay?

When you first become a tenant, your housing officer will tell you about the different ways you can pay your rent. You can then decide which method suits you. If you cannot pay in your usual way, you should make other arrangements rather than delaying payment. If there is a problem, tell your housing officer. For more information on any of the following ways to pay, contact your housing officer.

• Paying by direct debit
• Using your swipe card to pay at a post office
• Paying by swipe card at an area office (payment kiosk)
• Paying by swipe card at any retail outlet that displays the PayPoint logo
• Using a debit card to pay online at www.communityhg.com
• Using a debit card to pay over the phone on 0870 770 0472

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3. How do I know how much rent to pay?

When we offer you a home, the housing officer showing you around will tell you how much the rent and any service charges are. The amount will be set out in your tenancy agreement. If you claim Housing Benefit, your housing officer will tell you how much to pay until your claim is worked out. Your housing officer will also be happy to answer questions you have about your rent.

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4. How often should I pay?

We charge rent every two weeks. You must pay your rent on the first Monday of every fortnight. If you want to pay over longer periods than two weeks, you must pay all the rent up front. If these options don’t suit your budget, you must speak to your housing officer to make other arrangements.

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5. Help with paying your rent – Housing Benefit

All tenants of WFCH and WFSH are entitled to apply for Housing Benefit from the relevant council. The amount you are entitled to is worked out by the council’s Housing Benefit Section. If you receive benefit and your circumstances change, you should immediately tell the Housing Benefit Section and your housing officer. You will always have to pay back any benefit you have claimed but which you are no longer entitled to.

The council can pay your Housing Benefit direct to WFCH or WFSH, as long as you agree to this. We recommend that you do this, as it avoids any risks of cheque's being lost or any other problems which may cause you to fall behind with your rent payments.

To make sure your account runs smoothly, you should:

• let us know if you go on holiday
• contact us straight away if you have a problem paying your rent
• make a claim for Housing Benefit if you think you are entitled to it
• tell the council’s Housing Benefit Section straight away if your circumstances change

We must give you four weeks' notice if we plan to increase your rent.

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6. How is the rent worked out?

The boards of WFCH and WFSH set all rent, in line with our rent-setting policy. We take into account the size of your property, the number of bedrooms and any extra facilities it has. For more details, please contact your housing officer.

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7. What do the rent and service charges pay for?

We use them to manage and maintain your home and provide grounds maintenance, cleaning and a repairs service. This includes costs for staff and other things such as legal advice.

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8. Will I get notice if my rent is increased?

Yes. We review our rent each year, and we will give you at least four weeks' notice, in writing, if we plan to increase it.

We will tell you why we have to increase your rent and by how much. If you don't accept the increase, you must end your tenancy. We will agree increases with you if you choose to make improvements to your home.

We will tell the council about these changes so any change to your Housing Benefit will be worked out automatically.

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9. Responsibilities of joint tenants

If you are a joint tenant, you are equally responsible for the total amount of rent and any payments you owe, so it is important that each tenant knows the state of the rent account.

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10. How can I find out the balance of my account?

We will send you a statement of your account every three months, showing all the transactions that you have made. If you want to know your balance at any other time, you can ask us for a statement and we will send you one within three working days. Our housing assistants or your housing officer can give you a balance on your account over the phone, as long as you give them your rent account number.

If you have registered your mobile phone number with us, you can also check your rent balance by sending the word "balance" followed by your tenancy reference number to 07950 643 643.

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11. What happens if I don’t agree with the balance on my account?

If you do not agree with the balance on your rent statement, we will check it for you within 10 working days. If there is a credit, we will refund this, as long as you do not owe us any other money. If you want your rent statement checked, contact your housing officer.

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12. What happens if I don't pay my rent?

If you do not pay your rent, you will have broken your tenancy conditions. If you do not contact us to make an agreement to pay, we will:

• write to you to tell you how much you owe
• contact you if you do not pay – we will check that you are claiming and receiving any benefit you may be
• entitled to, and tell you what action you need to take to reduce your debts; and tell you where you can get further advice, such as from Citizens Advice (we can arrange a debt advice session with your local Citizens Advice Bureau if you need it)

If the amount you owe continues to increase, we will serve you with a Notice of Seeking Possession. This will give you 28 days to sort out the problem before we take legal action.

If you do not clear your debts or keep to an agreement to reduce them, we will take action through the court to recover the amount you owe (plus any court costs) and take possession of your home.

We realise that every case is different and we will try to take your personal circumstance into account when we are dealing with your debts. We feel it is very important to discuss these kinds of issues if our tenants are prepared to co-operate with us.

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13. Paying rent for a garage

If you rent a garage from us, you must keep up with the payments. If you don’t, we will cancel our licence agreement with you and change the locks. We will charge you for this work.

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