Private Landlords Accuse DWP of Discrimination

Private sector landlords claim they are facing discrimination by the government as the roll out of universal credit continues. The Residential Landlords Association (RLA) is upset that the DWP has established a universal credit helpline exclusively for use by social landlords with tenants facing difficulties with their housing costs. The RLA says this follows on from the DWP also giving social housing landlords access to information on the claims and arrears history of tenants receiving universal credit under a data sharing agreement, which has not been extended to private sector landlords. The RLA points to figures from the English Housing Survey, which shows 26% of tenants in private rented housing are in receipt of housing benefit, a figure likely to grow as the sector increases in size. Read more on 24dash.