Change of circumstances

It is crucial that you inform of us of any changes in circumstances. These changes can relate to yourself, or another member of your household.

We must be notified within one month of the change to ensure you don’t lose money you are entitled to, or receive too much money that you will have to pay back.

Please see below for our benefits calculator:

• Use our benefits calculator

How to report a change of circumstances:

By post
If you need to notify us of a change of circumstances:

• Please download and fill out a change of circumstances form 

If you receive Housing Benefit from Northumberland Council and are moving within the Northumberland area, you can fill out a change of address form:

•  Please download and fill out a change of address form 

To ensure your change in circumstances is processed as soon as possible your form should be posted to:

Benefit Section
Northumberland County Council
County Hall
Morpeth
Northumberland
NE61 2EF


It is important you provide us with the original evidence that supports your change in circumstances where appropriate, for example, pay slips, bank statements or birth certificates.

Photocopies are not accepted and originals will be returned
 

If you require further help or information, please phone 0345 600 6400 (charged at your local rate).

Examples of changes you must tell us about: 

Changes to your income
You need to tell us if:

• you, or anyone living with you, gets a job (regardless of working hours), changes their job, or leaves their job
• ​you start or stop getting income support, jobseekers' allowance, employment support allowance
• you start or stop getting tax credits
• the money you or your partner gets increases or decreases
• the money non-dependants get increases or decreases
• there are any other changes in the money people in your home get

Changes in your home
You need to tell us if:

• you change your address
• the number of people in your home changes
• anyone moves into or out of your home (including lodgers/sub-tenants)
• ​your rent changes, your landlord changes, or moves

Other changes
You need to tell us if:

• you, or your partner, go into hospital for more than six weeks
• you, or your partner, become a student, or stop being a student
• the amount of savings or capital you have changes
• ​any of your children leave school or home
• someone starts to receive Universal Credit

PLEASE NOTE: In all cases, it is your duty to notify us of any changes in your circumstances. Do not rely on someone else to pass the message on.

If you are already claiming housing benefit and need additional financial help, we may be able to help you.

• Please click here for more information. 

You may have received more Housing Benefit than you should have done.

This could be because:

• the information you gave was wrong
• you did not report a change in your circumstances straight away
• you gave the wrong information when you reported a change of circumstances
• there was a mistake with your payment
• a fraudulent claim was made

Pay an overpayment

 
You must make your payment straight away.
 
If you have any problems, contact us immediately.
Telephone: 0345 600 6400 (Monday to Thursday, 8:30am to 5pm and Friday, 8:30am to 4pm)
 

QR code

Scan the QR code on the bottom of the overpayment invoice.
This will take you to the Council payments site.
You can pay by debit or credit card.
 

Online

Pay online using your debit or credit card.  You’ll need your overpayment invoice number.
Pay your overpayment online
 

Internet

You can pay by debit or credit card.
Visit www.northumberland.gov.uk
 

Telephone

Pay using your debit or credit card on our automated telephone service.

Telephone: 0345 600 6400 (24 hours a day, 7 days a week)
You’ll need your overpayment invoice number.
 

Direct debit

Pay by Direct Debit on the 1st of each month.

Telephone: 0345 600 6400 (Monday to Thursday, 8:30am to 5pm and Friday, 8:30am to 4pm).
Ask to speak to an Overpayments Officer to set up your instruction.
 

Standing order

You can set up a standing order at your bank or use your online banking.
You’ll need your overpayment invoice number and our bank details.

Bank Name: Barclays Bank PLC
Sort Code: 20-58-25
Account Number: 53023915
 

Post Office or PayPoint

Take your benefit overpayment invoice to any Post Office or PayPoint outlet.
You'll need the overpayment invoice bar code to process your payment.
You’ll get a receipt for the payment.
There’s no fee for this service.

Find my nearest Post Office
Find my local PayPoint store
 

By post

Make your cheque or postal order payable to Northumberland County Council.
Write the overpayment invoice number on the back of the cheque or postal order.

Address
Income Section
Northumberland County Council
County Hall
Morpeth
NE61 2EF


 

If you disagree with the overpayment 

You can write and ask for a review of your overpayment within one month of the decision notice.

Landlords can write and ask for a review within one month of this notice if

• they have received an invoice for payment
• a deduction is being made from benefits they receive, to recover an overpayment about another tenant

Address
Benefit Department
Northumberland County Council
County Hall
Morpeth
NE61 2EF
(Do not bring any documents in person to County Hall)
 
 

How we can recover the money

If you receive Housing Benefit, we’ll recover the overpayment from your current benefit payments.

If you do not get Housing Benefit, we’ll send an invoice or recover the overpayment from other benefits. 

The Council can contact your employer to collect payments from your wages each week or month.  You must repay the overpayment in full.
 
The Council can recover an overpayment from the person who caused it, or from the person who received it.

We will not let recovering the overpayment affect any criminal proceedings the Council may bring in respect of fraudulent claims.
 

Information for landlords

If the Council decides to recover overpayment from a landlord, it’ll issue an invoice. 

The Council may also make deductions from other tenants’ benefits paid to that landlord. Do not treat that deducted amount as rent arrears.  The landlord must not recover that shortfall from tenants.

If a landlord has not paid their invoice or broken a repayment arrangement, the Council can go to court to get the money back.

If landlords frequently do not repay overpayments, the Council can declare them unfit under benefit rules and refuse to pay them directly.

 

People who deliberately claim benefits they are not entitled to are committing a criminal offence. If a landlord, who is paid housing benefit directly, fails to notify the council their tenant has left the property, they may be committing benefit fraud.

• Find more information on benefit fraud here.