Housing Benefit payments are not usually aligned with your rent due date because local authorities pay everybody’s housing benefit on the same day. This means that you may have some rent arrears whilst you wait for the next housing benefit payment, or you may have a small credit on your account, which is Housing Benefit that has been paid in advance of the due date.
You may have rent arrears because your housing benefit award does not cover all of your rent. This may happen because you have savings or other income that causes your entitlement to be reduced. It may also happen because some rent elements are not eligible for payment via Housing Benefit. This means that they must be paid from other funds.
Tenants are responsible for payment of all rent charges, whether they are covered by Housing Benefit or not.