Rent Collection

Frequently asked questions

What is the balance of my rent account?

If you would like to know the balance of your rent account, you can call 020 8227 2922 or 020 8227 2924 and any member of staff would be happy to help you, please ensure that you have your rent account reference number at hand.

Your rent account number is printed on any correspondence that we send to you and it is also printed on your rent account statements. You can also check your balance online. The online rent statement will show the last 12 weeks transactions.

Why has my housing benefit stopped?

Your housing benefit may stop or be cancelled for a number of reasons. If you require clarification or if you think the decision to stop your housing benefit is wrong, then you should contact the Housing Benefit Section in the first instance on 020 8227 2970.

Alternatively you can visit the one stop shop which is situated at the Barking Learning Centre, at 2 Town Square, Barking, IG11 7NB, Tel: 020 8215 3000 or 020 8215 3028, where you can speak to a qualified Housing Benefit Officer. You can also drop into the Barking and Dagenham Direct Office at 90 Stour Road, Dagenham, RM10 7JD between 8.30am - 5pm, Monday to Friday.

There is also a visiting and welfare team that can visit you in your home if you are unable to come to the office, they are also situated at 90 Stour Road (Tel: 020 8227 2567, email: visitingandwelfareemails@lbbd.gov.uk). They can also advise you of other housing benefit advice surgeries that are in and around the borough.

I want to start paying my rent by Direct Debit, how do I go about it?

Paying your rent and other Council bills by Direct Debit is the easiest way to pay. If you want to pay your rent by Direct Debit you have several options available to you.

You can either call the Rent Accounts Department on 020 8227 2922 or 020 8227 2924 and you can request a Direct Debit mandate to be sent to your home address or alternatively you can come down to the Housing Office at 90 Stour Road or one can be filled in at the Barking Learning Centre.

You can also print off a Direct Debit mandate. We will be introducing paperless Direct Debits in the near future, keep a look out in the local press for further details. Please allow up to 2 weeks for the Direct Debit to be set up. You have the option to pay your rent by Direct Debit either on a weekly, 2 weekly, 4 weekly or monthly basis. If you choose to set up your Direct Debit on a monthly basis, you have the following dates to choose from 1st, 8th, 15th or 22nd of each month.

I have received a Notice of Seeking Possession what do I do?

If you have received a Notice of Seeking Possession, do not ignore it. This is the first step of legal action that the Council takes against tenants with an unacceptable level of rent arrears.

If you have been served with a Notice of Seeking Possession this entitles the council to take you to court if you do not clear your arrears or make an acceptable payment arrangement to recover the unpaid rent that you owe, you may also incur costs at court which will be added to the debt that you owe.

You should make contact with the Rent Collection Office on either of the following numbers 020 8227 2922 or 020 8227 2924 to either make an arrangement to pay off your arrears or be advised what to do next. It maybe that you have applied for housing benefit and your claim has not yet been assessed.

If you ignore the Notice of Seeking Possession and your rent account continues to remain in arrears, we will then apply to the court for an order of possession of your property.

Why can you not talk to me about my husband's / wife's rent account?

It is not Council Policy to discuss any rent account without the permission of the tenant. This is due to the Data Protection Act 1988.

If you would like your wife, husband, member of your household or friend to speak to the council on your behalf, you will need to provide written permission that you are giving the Council authorisation for us to discuss your rent account with any third party on your behalf.

Please contact the Rent Collection Section at the address shown for further advice.

You can not evict me, I have got children!

Yes we do evict families with rent arrears, even if you have children. This however is the very last resort. We will not tolerate rent arrears under any circumstances and will therefore take the appropriate action necessary to recover any debt that is owed.

We have very stringent policies and procedures in place that try to prevent you from losing your home at an early stage. It is in your own interest that your arrears do not even get to the stage where an eviction is necessary.

How do I rent a garage from the Council?

If you have a clear rent account you can rent a garage from Barking and Dagenham council within the borough by either visiting the Barking Learning Centre (Tel: 020 8215 3028) or by visiting the Housing Office at 90 Stour Road (Tel: 020 8215 3002).

Alternatively you can email them at garages@lbbd.gov.uk. If you are a council tenant, the weekly charge for renting a garage from the council is £10.15 and if you are a private tenant, the weekly charge for renting a garage from the Council is £11.92.

How do I terminate an existing garage tenancy?

To terminate a garage tenancy, you must hand the garage keys into the office where the tenancy agreement was signed. You will then be given a receipt for the keys, and the tenancy will be terminated a week after the following Monday that you hand the keys in.

There must be no arrears on your rent account; any arrears will have to be cleared before the tenancy is terminated.

I have received an eviction notice, what can I do to prevent being evicted from my home?

If you have received an eviction notice, you need to act quickly. Do not ignore it, it will not go away. You can stop the eviction from going ahead if you pay all the money that you owe to the council right away in cash. Or you can apply to the Court to suspend the eviction and the court will make the final decision.

You should seek legal advice from either the Citizens Advice Bureau, or any other aid and advice agency and you should also contact the Rent Collection Section as soon as possible to discuss your options. If you ignore the notice, then we will go ahead and carry out the eviction on the date on the notice.