Claiming Benefits
Claiming through Job Centre Plus
If you have just claimed or are about to make a new claim for Income Support, Job Seekers Allowance or Employment Support Allowance, you should make your claim for Housing Benefit and/or Council Tax Benefit through Job Centre Plus Customer Contact Centre (Tel 0800 055 6688). Please tell Job Centre Plus you pay Rent and/or Council Tax so they will send us details about your claim for Housing Benefit and/or Council Tax Benefit.
Once we have the claim details from Job Centre Plus we may need more information from you to complete your claim. We will write to you about any further information we shall need.
If you have not heard from us within 21 days of making your claim through the Job Centre please contact us at the Benefit Section to check we have received the details from the Job Centre. If we have not received a claim from Job Centre Plus we will advise you what to do next.
Claiming direct from the Council
If you are not making a claim for Income Support, Job Seekers Allowance or Employment Support Allowance you should make your Housing Benefit and/or Council Tax Benefit claim to Huntingdonshire District Council using our on-line form.
Use the link on the right to make your claim through our new on-line form. Guidance notes on how to complete the claim are shown at the start of the form. You can complete the form at your own pace but remember the earlier we receive your claim the sooner we can pay you any benefit that you maybe entitled to. However, you should complete the form within a calendar month of starting it, otherwise you may lose benefit.
Remember when you make a claim you will need to provide original documents to support your claim. The information we require includes:
- Proof of your (and your partner’s) National Insurance Number
- Proof of your (and your partner’s) identity
- Proof of residency at the address you are claiming for
- Proof of your (and your partner's) income e.g. wage slips, self employed earnings , pension slips, payment books, Tax Credit Award letter etc
- Proof of your (and your partner's) savings and investments e.g. bank statements, building society pass books, Income Bonds, share certificates etc
The online form will only ask the questions relevant to your circumstances and once completed you will get details of the further information you will need to provide on the document called “Evidence List”. Please make sure you read this and keep it safe. It tells you about the information you will need to provide in support of your claim. Your supporting documents should be provided as soon as you can.
We will not be able to work out your benefit entitlement until we have seen all the information required. It is up to you to provide the relevant documents within one month of the date of your claim, otherwise you may lose benefit.
If you have problems getting the information, please contact us straight away and we can give you more time.
Help to claim
If you are unsure about making your on-line claim please call us on 01480 388308 and our advisors will help you with any questions you may have.
You can also make your on-line claim at any of our Customer Service Centres where help is also available.
If you are housebound we may be able to visit you at home and collect the information we need. Please call us on 01480 388308 to discuss what we can do to help.
When do I claim benefit?
You should make a claim as soon as possible. If you delay claiming you may lose benefit.
We normally work out benefit from the Monday after the date you first contact the Council or Job Centre Plus. However, your Housing /Council Tax Benefit claim form must be received at these offices within one calendar month from the date you first start to make your claim, either via the Job Centre or our on-line form.
If you do not complete the on-line form or your claim via the Job Centre is not made within the one calendar month, your claim will start from the Monday after it is received.
You can ask for your claim to start from an earlier date than we receive it. This is called "Backdating" and more information about backdating your benefit is given opposite.