What if the tenant is withholding rent due to a dispute?
Once arrears of rent, whatever the cause, have reached 8 weeks then it is mandatory for the local authority to make payment direct to the landlord provided that there has been no finding that the landlord is not a “fit and proper” person or that it is not in the customer’s overriding interests to make direct payments. This can include where the tenant is in dispute with the landlord, but they must provide evidence of this.
