100,000 renters in England ‘risk eviction’ when
universal credit is cut
Housing charity Crisis says £20-a-week reduction could
be final blow for struggling households
Robert
Booth Social affairs correspondent
Thu 30 Sep
2021 06.00 BST
At least
100,000 renting households will be placed at risk of eviction when the
government’s planned £20-a-week cut to universal credit comes into effect next
week, the housing charity Crisis has warned.
The
proportion of private renters relying on benefits in England has surged to
around one in three since the start of the pandemic, leaving thousands at risk
of homelessness due to arrears if the uplift to UC is removed by ministers as
planned.
The
footballer Marcus Rashford is among those calling for its retention, citing
fears about child hunger.
The squeeze
on renters is being compounded by the final lifting of the emergency
restrictions on evictions during the pandemic in England and the end of the
furlough scheme on Friday.
Scotland,
Wales and Northern Ireland have extended more liberal measures on evictions
until next year.
“For many
struggling renters this cut could be the final blow that forces them from their
homes,” said Jon Sparkes, the chief executive of Crisis. “The UK government
must change course and keep the £20 uplift so that people don’t needlessly lose
their homes this winter and we have a fighting chance at recovery. The UK
government assured people they would not lose their home because of the crisis;
we must not fail them now.”
The charity
predicts evicted households who seek help from local councils with emergency
housing will end up costing the public purse more.
With a
third of renters relying on benefits following the pandemic, the impact could
be widespread.
The number
of private renters relying on UC or housing benefit for rent surged to almost 2
million in May 2021 with 560,000 renters joining benefits queues since February
2020, according to analysis by the housing charity Shelter of Department of
Work and Pensions figures.
The biggest
increases were seen in the most expensive areas of London and the south-east,
but other hotspots where the majority of renters rely on benefits include
Blackpool, Middlesbrough, Great Yarmouth and Torbay.
Dan Wilson
Craw, the director of the Generation Rent campaign group, said the UC cut would
have a twin effect on renters, pushing some into arrears that would lead to
eviction and make it harder for them to pass affordability checks to get a new
home. He said about half of private renters who rely on local housing allowance
benefits already do not get enough to cover their rent and have to top it up.
“Without
the uplift, and with the end of furlough … we will see another surge in
eviction notices served in the run-up to Christmas,” he said. “There’s still
time for the government to step in with a Covid rent debt fund to clear
renters’ arrears and keep people in their homes.”
From 1
October, the notice periods for anyone served a section 21 “no fault” eviction
notice in England will have two rather than four months’ notice to find a new
home. For tenants in arrears, the notice period for anyone owing less than four
months’ rent was cut from four to two months and for anyone with longer arrears
to four weeks.
A
government spokesperson said the UC uplift was always temporary and “designed
to help people through the toughest stages of the pandemic.”
“Universal
credit will continue to provide vital support for those both in and out of work
and we will deliver a fairer and more effective rental market that works for
both tenants and landlords,” they said, adding the government is spending £750m
to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping over 2021-22 and will publish a white
paper on renting including the abolition of “no fault” evictions in due course.
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