The housing charity surveyed more than 450 LHA claimants for their report ‘For whose benefit?' and the results reveal a series of systematic flaws with the implementation of LHA. This has left thousands of tenants struggling to manage their finances, with many in danger of losing their homes.
Shelter says LHA, a form of housing benefit which was introduced last year for tenants in private rented housing, is not fulfilling its original objectives and is in urgent need of reform. The charity also says the Government must immediately restore choice to tenants about whether LHA is paid direct to them or to their landlord, and undertake its promised two year review of LHA to rectify the current problems.
LHA was designed to promote fairness, choice and personal responsibility for claimants. However, Shelter's research shows that LHA in its current form is actually taking choice away from claimants and causing serious financial hardship, with 95% of respondents struggling to manage their finances.
The charity's director of policy and campaigns, Kay Boycott, said: "LHA was intended to introduce desperately needed reform to housing benefit. While we support the original principles of the system, LHA is currently failing tenants and landlords. Our research shows the government must make urgent changes to LHA to ensure claimants do not continue to be disadvantaged."
In the survey 81% of people said they found it fairly or very difficult to find a suitable home that was affordable, and 59% of claimants said they had to make up shortfalls in their rent. Many respondents were doing this by going without essentials such as food or sufficient heating.
Shelter believes part of the reason for the financial hardship is due to many claimants being priced out of their local area because the boundaries used to calculate LHA - known as a Broad Rental Market Areas (BRMAs) - are too large.
This means claimants in expensive parts of BRMAs are being forced to move out or find extra cash to make up the huge shortfall in rents. However, in the cheapest parts of BRMAs, anecdotal evidence shows some landlords are hiking up rents when they know local housing allowance will pay out a higher rent than they are charging.
Ms Boycott said: "Shelter is urging the Government to review the boundaries of the BRMAs to allow claimants more choice about where they live and give them greater access to affordable housing."
