Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what mechanisms are in place for housing providers to report the end of a tenancy where Universal Credit Housing Element is paid directly to landlords; and what steps his Department is taking to prevent and recover overpayments made in such circumstances.

Landlords can report changes of this nature through a range of routes, including by email and via the Department’s Employment and Partnership Manager network. However, Universal Credit is designed around the principle that claimants are responsible for reporting changes of circumstance. For that reason, while information from landlords can trigger checks and investigation, claimants are still required to make a declaration through “report a change”.