4 September 2009, 09/192
Good news for thousands of
households in West Lancs
Thousands of households in West Lancashire
have received good news about reductions in Council house rents and
heating bills.
Over 6,000 tenants will save, on average,
around £1.78 a week following the Council’s decision to implement
rent reductions at the beginning of October, with the cuts
backdated to April.
In addition, over 700 tenants who pay a
weekly heating charge in addition to their rent will see their
heating bills reduced by 16% from October.
Cllr Val Hopley, portfolio holder for
housing, said: “This is great news for Council tenants. Many people
are having difficulty making ends meet in the current economic
situation and the announcement that rents and heating charges are
being reduced will be welcomed in households in all parts of the
borough.”
The Council has been able to reduce heating
charges by negotiating new prices with gas and electricity
suppliers and passing on the savings to tenants. However, it is
stressed that the reduction applies only to tenants who pay heating
charges to the council, not to tenants who pay bills direct to the
power suppliers.
Rent increases are fixed annually by the
Government, which tells councils how much rent they must
charge. Earlier this year, the Government decided to reduce
the 2009/10 increase from around 6% to around 3%. However, the
announcement came too late for implementation in April 2009 when
rents in West Lancs were increased by around 6%.
After receiving assurances that the decrease
would not result in loss of subsidy that might adversely affect
tenants, the Council has made arrangements to implement the change.
Rent bills will be reduced from 5 October 2009 and the reduction
will be backdated to April. Tenants who have overpaid will be able
to claim a refund, or adjust future payments.
The Council is writing to every tenant
individually to let them know what their new rent and heating
charges will be. Tenants who receive housing benefit will also
receive letters to explain how they will be affected.
Related information