I am on housing benefit and recieve ESA. I just got a letter from council saying I owe rent

[RumHam]

I am worried sick. Why do letters like this always arrive on Saturdays when you can't do anything about it until Monday?!

I am on ESA and PIP (high rate for both PIP parts) due to MH conditions and arthritis. I get full HB and last month I got the usual benefit calculation letter from the council I get every few months/few times a year and it said I was still entitled to full HB and council tax reduction due to my ESA and the benefit would start on 4th April 2022 and I still have to pay nothing weekly, same as the last ten years or so I have been on these benefits. Today I got a letter from them dated 7th April saying I owe £200 odd in rent which was a shock. I've never had a letter like this.

My ESA hasn't stopped. I was just paid in the last few days and the only other benefit change was that I passed my PIP review last month and my award is staying the same for the next few years. The council already know about my current PIP award.

Could this letter just be a muck up? I am worried sick. Any other bill I would be less worried about waiting until Monday to fix but rent is the main one. Do I pay the money just to be safe? Or just wait until Monday? I am a nervous wreck about it

Has anyone else ever had a letter like this while on HB?

Wait until Monday. Has the rent increased? My brother gets full HB but he has to top up the rent.

It could be down to the date the rent statement was produced. Housing benefit is paid in arrears so if they produced the rent statement before the next lot of housing benefit was paid it would make it look like you're in rent arrears, but it would be back to £0 when the HB is paid again. Di you know when the HB regular payments are made?

Hi thank you both for your replies. I think the rent has went up by a couple of pounds but my HB statement from last month says my award covers the increase. I have no idea when the HB payments are made as it all goes straight to the council. I get my ESA every second Monday if that goes for anything when it comes to HB being paid? I really don't know much about how HB works since the money always goes straight to the council.

HB is paid in arrears and rent is required in advance so there will be times in the month when the two dont tally up and it will show as an arrears on your account. They should be able to explain that to you on Monday. However there is another possibility which is that you havent been paying service charge/water rates or other sundry payments but you should have been informed way before now if they were racking up which suggests to me its about the due dates and pay dates rather than other reasons

Could it be for water rates or other ineligible charges that are included in your rent but not eligible to be included in the HB payments

It will be a mistake. Before I was moved onto Disability Universal Credit, I received HB & ESA (and PIP) and this often happened in April. As a pp said, it's to do with it being paid in arrears x