FAQs - Citizens Advice Torridge, North, Mid and West Devon

> Are your offices open?

> My landlord is trying to evict me, what do I do?

If you’re at threat of eviction and you want to know your rights and responsibilities, it’s essential to establish what kind of tenancy you have. This can be complicated, but we’ve broken it down so that you might find it easier to know if you’re protected, and what to do next.

If you live in private accommodation.
The first step is to check your tenancy agreement/contract to establish what kind of tenant you are. In most cases, someone renting from a private landlord will be on an Assured Shorthold Tenancy (AST).

If you don’t know what kind of tenancy you have because you were never given a contract follow this link – Shelter tenancy checker

If you’re renting from a private landlord and you have a different kind of tenancy agreement, or you have tied accommodation to your job, then it’s really important you contact us as soon as possible, as the law around your status can be more complicated.

If you have an AST, in order to remove you from the property your landlord doesn’t always have to give a reason, so it’s important to know if you are close to, or have ended your ‘fixed term’. (A fixed term means the period of time you are contractually agreed to live in your property, and this should be stated clearly in your tenancy agreement.)

If your fixed term is over, you will have moved into a ‘periodic’ tenancy.

If you’re inside a fixed term and your landlord wants to evict you because of rent arrears or anti social behaviour scroll down to ‘I’ve been served a section 8 notice’.

I’ve been served a section 21 notice.
Your landlord would need to serve you something called a Section 21 notice, and give you a minimum of 2 months (this differs if you pay weekly) notice. A valid section 21 notice is known as a ‘no fault eviction’, and in England it’s still currently possible to evict tenants through this process without giving a reason.

Follow this link to check if your landlord has served you notice correctly –
Check if your section 21 notice is valid

If you’ve been served a valid section 21 notice your landlord would have to go to court to remove you from the property if you do not vacate on the date specified in your notice. Whilst this can buy you time if you’re struggling to find anywhere to live, it will likely result in additional court costs, and eventually bailiffs will be instructed to remove you and your belongings from the property.

It’s important that you get help if you’re facing eviction and cannot find anywhere else to live. We can support you with looking at benefit entitlement and making a homelessness application through your local council.

See this link for more information on your options –
Options if you’re facing homelessness

If you think your landlord has not served your notice correctly, has not followed procedure or is doing so in retaliation to complaints about disrepair, it’s also really important to contact us, or your local council housing department as soon as possible to get advice on your next steps.

You can find your local council details here – https://www.gov.uk/find-local-council

I’ve been served a section 8 notice

The law around section 8 notices can be complex, but this is the route landlords can take to regain their property at any stage in your tenancy if they can prove you’ve breached the terms of your contract.

It is most commonly used where tenants have consistently failed to pay rent on time, in full, or at all, or where there are concerns of anti social behaviour.

If you’ve been served with a section 8 notice, follow this link –
If you get a section 8 notice

It is possible to challenge a section 8 notice, depending on the circumstances, and i’s important that you contact us, another Housing advice provider (such as www.shelter.org.uk) or your local council’s housing department as soon as possible.

If you are a lodger, you are known as an excluded occupier and have significantly less protections around eviction. If you are at risk of eviction it’s important you contact your local council housing department as soon as possible.
See this link for more information on your rights as a lodger – What rights do lodgers have?

If you live in social or council accommodation.
If you live in social (housing association accommodation) or council housing, your status as a tenant can sometimes be more secure than that of private tenancies. However, if your landlord wants to evict you they will have to serve you a ‘notice seeking possession’. It’s essential to establish what kind of tenancy agreement you have so if you no longer have your written contract, you can contact your landlord to confirm your status.

If your landlord has served a ‘notice seeking possession’ they will have to lay out ‘grounds’ for eviction, such as rent arrears or anti social behaviour.

You can check if your notice is valid here –
Check if your notice is valid

It is possible to challenge an eviction, depending on the circumstances, so it’s important you contact us or another Housing advice provider (such as www.shelter.org.uk) as soon as possible.

> My landlord won't do any repairs to my home, what can I do?

> I am struggling with rising energy costs, what can I do?

> I am too ill to work, what help can I get?

> My benefits have been stopped, what can I do?

If you were in receipt of a sickness or disability benefit which has been stopped, you may be able to challenge this if you act quickly.

The first step in challenging a decision to stop your benefits depends on what you were claiming.

If you claimed a DWP or HMRC benefit
You can ask DWP or HMRC to look at it again by asking for a ‘Mandatory Reconsideration‘. This should be done within 1 month of the decision to stop the benefit, but can be done within 13 months depending on the circumstance.

Example of DWP and HMRC benefits:
– Universal Credit
– Employment Support Allowance
– Personal Independence Payments
– Attendance Allowance
– Disability Living Allowance
– Tax Credits
– Child Benefit

You can find out more about mandatory reconsiderations here – Mandatory Reconsiderations

It’s really important to look at the reasons given for stopping your benefits in the first place, and when asking for a mandatory reconsideration you need to be clear as to what you’re disputing, and why! Most importantly you should include medical or supporting evidence where possible. Our Benefits advisers can support you with a mandatory reconsideration but as time is of the essence, it’s important you contact us asap.

If your mandatory reconsideration has been turned down you can then Appeal.

See below for information on when and how to start an appeal with DWP and HMRC.
Appealing against a benefit decision – Starting your appeal

Our team of volunteer Tribunal Representations can potentially support you with your appeal and/or represent you. However, as our tribunal representative team is entirely volunteer lead, this is dependent on availability and merit of the case. We cannot promise to represent you.

It’s important to note – if you’re challenging a decision where you’ve been awarded a lower rate than you feel you are entitled, asking for a mandatory reconsideration and appealing the decision will mean the whole award is looked at again. This could potentially result in a total loss of the benefit.

If you are challenging a decision to stop your Housing Benefit see the link below – Challenging a housing benefit decision

If your benefits have been reduced because of an alleged overpayment, or because you failed to comply with your claimant commitment (also known as a sanction) it’s important you contact us as soon as possible as this can be a complex and lengthy process to challenge.

More information on the process for challenging a sanction is below –
Challenging a sanction

If you need help in challenging any decisions affecting your benefits, our Advisers and Benefits Advisers can support you, but it’s important you get in touch with us as soon as you are notified of the decision.

> The bailiffs are coming, what can I do?

> What are Personal Independence Payments (PIP)?

Personal Independence Payment (PIP) is extra money to help you with everyday life if you’ve an illness, disability or mental health condition. You must at least 16 or under state pension age at the point of claim.

You can get it on top of Employment and Support Allowance or other benefits. Your income, savings, and whether you’re working or not don’t affect your eligibility.

PIP is not based on the condition you have or the medication you take. It is based on the level of help you need because of how your condition affects you. Click the link below to find out what sorts of help you might need in order to qualify.

Check if you’re eligible for PIP

If you think you might be eligible for PIP, you can find out how to claim below.

How to claim PIP

When you telephone the Disability Service to request an application form, you will be asked some basic questions to check your right to apply for benefits in the UK.

This process is known as ‘PIP1’.

The DWP will then send you a ‘How your disability affects you’ questionnaire (or a ‘PIP2’ form). The questionnaire will have a date stamp on it to specify when it should be returned by.

For tips on how to demonstrate that you meet the criteria for PIP, you should follow the guidance set out in the links below.

How to fill in your claim form

You can find useful tips on what sort of evidence to supply with your claim form below.

Getting evidence to support your claim

If you return your completed questionnaire to DWP within the time frame your claim, if successful, will be backdated to the date you called to apply.

If you do not return your completed questionnaire within the time frame, you could ask for an extension but DWP are not obliged to agree to this.

Please be aware that your form will not be invalid if you fail to return it in time. It will mean that any successful claim will be paid from the point at which DWP started to process your PIP2 claim form.

Our team of Advisers and Benefits Advisers can support with form filling. It’s important that you contact us to request help as soon as you order the form, or have received it, as we cannot guarantee an appointment within the timeframe.

Please be aware that before we agree to make you an appointment to fill in your form. We have to carry out a basic assessment on your eligibility, and we reserve the right to refuse you an appointment if we do not believe you are likely to have a successful claim.

> What is Attendance Allowance (AA)?

Attendance Allowance is extra money to help with your care needs. You could be entitled to Attendance Allowance if you have a disability or illness and need help or supervision throughout the day or at times during the night (even if you don’t currently get that help)

You need to have reached State Pension age to claim Attendance Allowance – check your State Pension age on GOV.UK. You also need to have a disability or illness that makes it hard for you to look after yourself.

Lots of people are entitled to Attendance Allowance but don’t know enough about it to claim.

Check if you can claim Attendance Allowance

If you think you might be eligible for Attendance Allowance, follow the link below for more information on how to claim.

Get an application form

It’s best to phone because your payments will be backdated to the date you phoned, as long as you return the form in 6 weeks. The date you need to return it by will be stamped on the form. If you download an application form, you’ll only be paid from the date that the DWP receive the form.

For comprehensive guidance on how to complete an AA form, see the link below

Filling in an Attendance Allowance form

If you return your completed AA form to DWP within the time frame your claim, if successful, will be backdated to the date you called to apply.

If you do not return your completed AA form within the time frame, you could ask for an extension but DWP are not obliged to agree to this.

Please be aware that your form will not be invalid if you fail to return it in time. It will mean that any successful claim will be paid from the point at which DWP started to process your AA claim form.

Our team of Advisers and Benefits Advisers can support with form filling. It’s important that you contact us to request help as soon as you order the form, or have received it, as we cannot guarantee an appointment within the timeframe.

Please be aware that before we agree to make you an appointment to fill in your form. We have to carry out a basic assessment on your eligibility, and we reserve the right to refuse you an appointment if we do not believe you are likely to have a successful claim.