Information and Proof Requirements

Any documents that you give us to prove the details on your claim must be originals. We cannot accept copies.

Proof of identity
In all cases, we may need to see proof of your identity.

Proof of your National Insurance Number
You must give us your National Insurance number and your partner's National Insurance number (if you have a partner) on the claim form. You must give us proof that the National Insurance numbers belong to you and your partner. You can do this by showing us documents such as a wage slip, letter from the Department for Work and Pensions, letter from HM Revenues and Customs, or a pension slip. The document must show your name or your partner's name and the National Insurance number.

Proof of your income and savings
We will check the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) records for proof of your income if you get any of the following benefits:

• Income Support,
• Jobseeker's Allowance,
• Pension Credit (Guarantee) and Pension Credit (Savings) - if you get Pension Credit (Savings), the Pension Service will also give us details of your income and savings.
• Incapacity Benefit
• Employment Support Allowance
• State Retirement Pension
• Maternity Allowance
• Widows Benefit
• Bereavement Benefit

If you do not get Income Support, income-based Jobseeker's Allowance, income based Employment Support Allowance or Pension Credit, we will need to see proof of any other income that we cannot check with the DWP records. We will also need to see proof of any savings and investments you have before we can work out your benefit. Our claim form gives details of the type and amount of information we need.

If you get any of the above benefits and have just moved into your home, you must tell the DWP that you have changed your address. 

• Exception - If you are making a claim for Second Adult Rebate (a type of Council Tax Benefit) only, then we do not need details or proof of your income and savings. This is because Second Adult Rebate is based on the income and savings of the other adults in your household. We need to see proof of this information and the claim form explains what proof we need. 

Proof of your non-dependant's income
As well as your income, you must also give us details of the income and savings of your 'non-dependants'. A non-dependant is someone aged 18 or over who lives with you as part of your family, but is not your partner. Examples of non-dependants are adult sons and daughters, elderly relatives or friends. We will need to see proof of your non-dependant's income and savings if they have low earnings or receive state benefits. Our claim form explains what proof we need.

Proof of your rent
If you rent your home from a private landlord, you must give us proof of your rent, for example, your tenancy agreement or your rent book. If you give us your rent book, we will also need a letter from your landlord. Our claim form gives more information about the proof we need.

Proof of your Circumstances
If your claim is being paid under the Local Housing Allowance rules, we will normally pay Housing Benefit to you.Click on ‘Local Housing Allowance’ in the ‘More Information’ column on the left for more details about Local Housing Allowance.

If you or someone else on your behalf asks us to pay Housing Benefit to your landlord, you will need to provide supporting evidence to help us decide who to make the payments to. This may be proof of rent arrears or other evidence to show why you are likely to have difficulty managing your Housing Benefit payments yourself. Please refer to the Safeguard Policy below that covers these situations and the documents you may complete to request payment to your landlord.

NOTE:If your claim is not affected by the Local Housing Allowance rules, you can still choose to have your Housing Benefit paid to your landlord or to you.

• LHA Safeguard Policy