If you are on a low income or receiving benefits you could be entitled to receive housing benefit. Whilst North Lincolnshire Council is reponsible for assessing and paying housing benefit, staff of North Lincolnshire Homes will be more than happy to help you with the process.
To find out if you are entitled to housing benefit you can use North Lincolnshire Council's free online housing benefit calculator 
.
If you are entitled to housing benefit then it is important that you make a claim as soon as possible. To claim your entitlement you must complete an application form, available from any North Lincolnshire Council Local Link Office or by contacting us.
To complete your application you are required to provide proof of:
- Your national insurance number
- Your identity
- Your income
- Your savings
All documents that you provide with your application form must be originals - photocopies will be taken once the application has been completed.
You can have your Housing Benefit paid direct to North Lincolnshire Homes so we can pay it straight onto your rent account. This is an easy and convenient way to deal with your housing benefit payments and it helps reduce the chances of falling behind with your rent. We recommend that all our tenants choose this option. There is a section on the housing benefit application form for you to fill in to request this.
You can also choose to allow North Lincolnshire Homes to contact the council on your behalf if there are any problems with your housing benefit. Again we recommend this as it allows us to help in sorting out any delays and helps get your benefit paid quickly. Please ask us for an authorisation form to allow this.
Changes in circumstances
It is a legal requirement that you inform the North Lincolnshire Benefit Section of any changes in your circumstances - for example if you are income increases or someone moves out of your home.
Changes in your circumstances could lead to your housing benefit entitlement being reduced - meaning you could have been overpaid and could be made to repay the money back.
North Lincolnshire Council want your feedback and views on claiming housing benefit . If you have ever made a claim for Housing and/or Council Tax Benefit or contacted the Benefit Section at the council, then, they would like to know your experiences, such as how you found the service at the local links or when you telephoned, the layout of the benefit claim form and how you think we can improve the service provided to you.