London Borough of Haringey (07A04966)

Housing benefit                           Maladministration causing injustice

30 January 2008

Haringey Council’s failure to consider his concerns cost a landlord £700 in lost rent. The Ombudsman says that the Council knew that the landlord had been advised by the police not to have direct contact with his tenant without a police escort, so would have found it difficult to obtain his rent from her. But the Council did not take this into account when, for four weeks, it paid the rent directly to the tenant instead of to the landlord. He never received the money.

The Ombudsman says, “I am not persuaded that [the landlord] was treated fairly”, and asks the Council to pay the complainant £700 compensation, plus £150 for his time and trouble in pursuing his complaint.

‘Mr Oak’ (not his real name for legal reasons) complained that the Council failed to consider evidence he submitted regarding his tenant. The tenant had a conviction for violence, was harassing Mr Oak, and had threatened to stop paying her rent. Prior to this, the tenant’s housing benefit had been paid direct to Mr Oak.

Mr Oak told the Council that his tenant was under notice of eviction, and provided evidence from the police. Mr Oak warned the Council that his tenant might ask for the housing benefit to be paid direct to her and, soon after, the tenant did so. The Council failed to consider the evidence provided by Mr Oak, and decided to pay the benefit direct to the tenant.

The tenant received the housing benefit for four weeks but did not use it to pay her rent. She has since been evicted, but Mr Oak never received the £700 due for the four weeks when benefit was paid to the tenant.

The Ombudsman found that the Council was at fault for failing to consider the evidence provided by Mr Oak. He also criticised the Council for failing to suspend benefit pending an investigation into who should receive the payment.

Date Published: 27/10/08