UC query

Hello. I have just had a call from my local jobcentre asking me to go into the office with a copy of my tenancy agreement and a utility bill. I am being transferred from ESA to UC. I am doing a telephone claim as opposed to an online claim. I told the advisor that I was away from home on holiday until the 23rd and she said call in when I get back, but my rent is due in the 16th August. I thought that the local authority would have shared all theses details with them as they needed them before for my housing benefit claim I had with them before all this nonsense started. Do u know if there is any way I could just email them to the UC dept. O have phoned and asked but was just told that my question had been forwarded on to a case manager and to wait for a call. I’m still waiting for a call from them since Friday as I didn’t get my first payment on Friday just gone. I’m lost. Any help appreciated pls. Thanks.

Hi harmony1

I'm afraid the system does not work that way. The local authority would not have known you were moving to universal credit - so there's nothing for them to share. Each claimant when migrating to universal credit has to say whether they want their housing benefit to be paid into their own bank account or sent directly to their landlord. They don't work on prior history, and so it means many people are finding that by the time their universal credit application is complete, they are in arrears with their housing benefit. I'm afraid I don't know of any way to email Universal Credit about this.

BIS