A housing benefit overpayment is when you pay your landlord housing benefit that you are not entitled to. We will normally ask you to pay back the overpayment.

Housing benefit overpayment occurs when:

  • your benefit hasn’t been adjusted to match your changed circumstances.
  • you receive a benefit when you weren’t supposed to.
  • there was no entitlement under the regulations.

Overpayments of housing benefit can be paid back in the following ways:

  • if you are receiving housing benefit, we will reduce your ongoing housing benefit until the overpayment has been paid back.
  • if you are no longer receiving housing benefit, we will send you an invoice. You must pay this invoice in full within 1 month of the date of the invoice.

How to pay

There are many ways to make a housing benefit overpayment. 

If you cannot pay the full amount on the invoice, you must contact the benefits team, benefits@easthants.gov.uk to make a payment arrangement.

By dial and pay

Please call 0300 303 0590 and follow the guidance.

You will need to quote your benefits overpayment invoice number which is a 10 digit number starting with ‘91’ when making your payment. This option is debit card only.

Online

Pay online

You will need to enter your benefits overpayment invoice number which is a 10 digit number starting with ‘91’.

By bank transfer

  • Sort code - 60-16-26
  • Account number - 66428777

You will need to enter your benefits overpayment invoice number which is a 10 digit number starting with ‘91’ as a reference for the payment.

What if I don’t repay my overpayment?

If you are unable to pay your invoice in full you must contact us to agree a repayment plan as soon as you receive your invoice to avoid further recovery action. If you do not agree a repayment plan or fail to make an agreed payment, the amount you must pay back each month may be decided for you.

Further recovery action we may take if you do not agree a repayment plan or fail to make an agreed payment includes:

  • we could request that your employer deduct payment from your salary, this is known as a direct earnings attachment (DEA) DEA Employers guide. The full regulations are The Social Security (Overpayments and Recovery) Regulations 2013
  • we could request that the Department for Work and Pensions deduct payment from your benefit entitlement
  • your debt could be passed to an external debt collection agent for collection who will visit you at home to secure payment
  • finally, we could obtain a County Court Judgement which will add extra costs to the existing debt. It will also make it difficult to obtain credit as it will affect your credit rating.

Independent advice

The Money Helper service is an independent service set up by the government to help people manage their money better. 

Citizens Advice offers advice on dealing with debt.

Christians Against Poverty provides free debt support.