Paying your rent

This guarantee is offered by all banks and building societies that accept instructions to pay direct debits.

If there are any changes to the amount, date or frequency of your direct debit the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham (Hammersmith & Fulham) will notify you ten working days in advance of your account being debited or as otherwise agreed. If you request Hammersmith & Fulham to collect a payment, confirmation of the amount and date will be given to you at the time of the request.

If an error is made in the payment of your direct debit by Hammersmith & Fulham or your bank or building society you are entitled to a full and immediate refund of the amount paid from your bank or building society

• If you receive a refund you are not entitled to, you must pay it back when Hammersmith & Fulham asks you to.

You can cancel a direct debit at any time by simply contacting your bank or building society. Written confirmation may be required. Please also notify us.

A: Your rent will be increased by 2.7%, which is in line with national social rent policy which is based on September Consumer Price Inflation (1.7%) plus 1%.

The increase will enable the council to continue improving tenants' homes and the services available to residents. The Council has kept rents and service charges as low as possible over the past decade and this strategy has ensured that our homes remain some of the lowest cost homes in London and provide value for money to residents.

The average increase is £3.65 per week but this is an overall average and the amount will vary from home to home.

A: Tenant service charges will reduce on average by £1.32. This is just an overall average and some tenants may have an increase in their charges. This is because there are a range of increases and reductions depending on the communal services your home receives and the size of your home.

These changes are in line with our policy for fully recovering the costs of all services provided that was introduced in November 2022. It is needed to ensure we can continue to provide the services you receive.

Where there are increases in charges, these are mainly due to pay and contract cost increases. Annual pay increases were between 2.5% and 6% in 2024/25 and a similar increase is expected in 2025/26. Many of our contract costs will increase next year based on the September 2024 Consumer Prices Inflation of 1.7%.

A: The charges for communally provided heating and hot water, and for communal lighting, will reduce for most tenants.

Communally provided heating and hot water

We have around 1,350 tenants who receive their heating and hot water via our district (communal) heating scheme. Although gas prices have risen very significantly in recent years, we're happy to say that your charges will fall from 7 April 2025 thanks to the beneficial contract that we've negotiated with our energy supplier.

Communal heating and hot water charges will reduce on average by £1.99 per week for the personal element of the service that is provided within homes and by £0.45 per week for the element provided in communal areas. This is an overall average and the amount will vary on the basis of property size and how much energy the communal heating source uses.

Communal lighting

We buy energy as part of a consortium with other councils through long-term contracts so that we secure a competitive price. So, despite recent sharp energy price rises, we were able to protect residents from the worst of the increases experienced across the country last year.

Although the costs of procuring electricity remain high, we will be able to reduce the costs of your electricity from 7 April by 46%, on average.

The charges are based not just on changes in the unit price of electricity but also on your usage, so if usage has changed since the charges were last adjusted, the change in your charges may be significantly different from the average reduction. Of the more than 10,000 tenants receiving communal electricity, 3,400 will see an increase in their charges.

A. The council continues to invest over £1m a week in modernisation and refurbishment works on our properties as we improve our homes for local residents and ensure the borough remains the best place in which to live, work and socialise.

We are also planning to deliver 831 new energy efficient homes for residents to help tackle the national housing crisis and provide residents with more affordable, accessible, safe, and sustainable homes in H&F.

The council has kept rents and service charges as low as possible over the past decade with some of the lowest rents in London for council tenants. This has become more difficult with high inflation and interest rates. Despite this, the average rent for our council homes will continue to be lower than the average rent for neighbouring boroughs in London following the change to your rent. The new H&F council rents for a two-bedroom home are, on average, around £637 a week less than equivalent private sector rents.

A: Details can be found in the The Housing Revenue Account Budget (2025/26), Rents & Service Charges (2025/26) & 10 Year Business Plan (2025/26 – 2034/35) report which was approved by Cabinet on 10 February 2025.

A: Target rent is the weekly rent that the Government expects all social housing tenants to be paying. In Hammersmith & Fulham, rents are lower on average than our other London authority neighbours' rents. The rent increase means H&F rents remain on average below target and will take many years to reach target rent. Therefore, depending on when your tenancy started, your rent may be significantly different from the average rent for a property of the same size and may be different from your neighbours'.

A: If you currently receive Housing Benefit, your entitlement will be amended to reflect the increase in rent. Our rent income team work closely with the council's Housing Benefit service to ensure that this is managed well.

A: If you or your partner are receiving Universal Credit Full Service (where you log on to your own Universal Credit account), you must log on to your Universal Credit account to let the DWP know your charges are changing from 7 April 2025. Please do not inform the DWP before 7 April 2025 as they will not apply your charges in advance.

A: We know how hard the cost-of-living crisis is hitting so many households and that this will not be ideal timing for rent and service charges increases.

Those who currently get all their rent and service charges paid for by benefits will get these increases paid for through these benefits. Please note, personal heating charges are not eligible for housing benefit.

We offer support if there's been a significant change in your finances because of the cost-of-living crisis or otherwise. We have a dedicated welfare benefits team who can guide you through the process of applying for Universal Credit, make referrals to additional support services and advise on hardship funds that you may be eligible for. The council has support available for residents facing additional hardship because of rent increases.

For all enquiries about changes to your rent and service charges and to find out more about support that is available:

• Contact the Cost of Living Team by visiting: www.lbhf.gov.uk/cost-living-support, call us on 0800 917 6994 or email us at costoflivingteam@lbhf.gov.uk
• Call your Rental Income Support Officer on 020 8753 6032 (please select 'option 2'), or email us at rentincome@lbhf.gov.uk
• Contact the Welfare Benefit advice line directly by calling 020 8753 5566.