Write off policy

The council has a write off policy.   This means that under certain circumstances we may be able to request a write off of rent arrears when arrears are under £10,000.

For an interim period all write off requests, once signed by the neighbourhood manager, should be scanned with all relevant documents into one single pdf and emailed to Karen King.  The request will be authorised  Angela Spooner. 

The categories that may apply are listed below. 

Category 1. Vulnerable tenants

For tenants on benefits or low employment income and Housing Benefit who are incapable of stable or full-time work.

This could be due to things such as disability, age, a chaotic history, a single parent with pre school children or getting support from children, schools and families, vulnerable people who have been paying by benefit deductions etc.

Read the full policy to find out more examples that may apply, details of these and how to make a application.

This category was extended in February 2019 to include Universal Credit claimants.

Category 2. Statute barred

This covers any debt that we cannot legally collect. Most of the time we will need to use this category in debt relief order or bankruptcy cases. See attached for more detail of how to deal with debt relief orders and bankruptcy.

Category 3. Residential rehabilitation

This is for normally single tenants who temporarily enter residential rehabilitation centres because of drug or alcohol addiction and where Housing Benefit will not cover both the council rent and the rehabilitation centre charges. 

Category 4. Community support

This is for tenants living alone (or with other members of the household in similar circumstances to them) who are not supported in any significant way by their families, for example, and who accrue rent arrears but, because of severe physical or mental ill health, legal action is considered to be inappropriate.

Category 5. Other exceptional circumstances

Write off applications in this category will be uncommon but might include:

• The residual element of a debt that, following a court order or formal agreement, has been satisfactorily repaid over a period of at least five years.

• A recoverable or irrecoverable debt that clearly (or in significant part) resulted from council error, omission or neglect, for example from an unreasonably delayed decision on succession or from a failure to properly advise a tenant who temporarily vacated a property during essential repairs or whilst suffering harassment.

Read the full policy for further details to see if it applies in your case, how much you can ask to be written off and on how to apply.

The form to apply is here.

For help with completing the form please refer here