Changes you must report

If you receive direct payment of housing benefit for a tenant, you have a duty to report to us any changes in your tenant's circumstances that you become aware of which could affect their housing benefit. It is a criminal offence for landlords, tenants and agents to not report these changes. You are not expected to intrude on your tenant's privacy, but you are expected to report a change that you could reasonably know about. 

Examples include:

• Any change in the tenant's address (including changing rooms in a house) 
• People joining or leaving the tenant's household 
• Any change in rent charged or services provided 
• Any obvious change in the tenant's income that you could reasonably be expected to be aware of