Discretionary Housing Payments

If you are claiming Housing Benefit or Council Tax Benefit but are having difficulty paying the rest of your rent or Council Tax yourself, you may be eligible for a Discretionary Housing Payment.  A Discretionary Housing Payment can be paid to you if:

• You already claim Housing and/or Council Tax Benefit, and
• There is a shortfall between your benefit and your rent charge or Council Tax charge
• You are having difficulty paying the shortfall

There are no rules, other than the ones above, who can get Discretionary Housing Payments.  Argyll & Bute Council are given a pot of money from the Department of Work and Pensions for Discretionary Housing Payments.  The Housing/Council Tax Benefits department decide who should be given the payments.

The Housing/Council Tax Benefit department will usually take into account any special circumstances that contribute to your financial difficulties, for example, if:

• You have to pay child maintenance
• You have to pay legal costs
• You have extra heating costs because you spend a lot of time at home because you are sick or disabled
• You have additional travel costs because you travel to a doctor or hospital or you care for a relative or friend.

To apply for this, you will have to fill in a claim form.  You will be able to get this by phoning or popping into your local council office.  Be sure to ask for a Discretionary Housing Payment form, as it is different to the form that you would have filled in when you first claimed Housing or Council Tax Benefit.

You will be asked to give evidence of your expenditure, that is, the money you have going out.  This could be a copy of a bill or your bank statements.  You should also provide any information about your circumstances that make things difficult for you financially.