The Regulator of Social Housing (RSH) has concluded that Joseph Rowntree Housing Trust (JRHT) has breached the rent standard.

In a new regulatory notice, the RSH has revealed that the social landlord discovered it had wrongly classified some of its homes as supported housing, leading to tenants being overcharged. As part of its detailed follow-on investigations, the provider found it had previously set rents incorrectly for hundreds of ‘fair rent’ tenancies.

JRHT self-referred to the RSH and is working alongside external advisors to resolve these issues. As part of this work, it’s carrying out a detailed review of rent setting across all of the homes it provides.

JRHT says it will identify and reimburse the tenants who have been overcharged and ensure its rent policies comply with requirements.

Karen Doran, Director of Regulatory Engagement at RSH, said: “Joseph Rowntree Housing Trust’s failure to set rents correctly has led to tenants being overcharged. It is now working with us to make sure it charges rents correctly and puts things right for the tenants who have been affected.”

“JRHT have recently undertaken a proactive review of all the rents we have charged our residents in recent years. During this review we have discovered that we have incorrectly categorised 89 properties as specialised supported housing which resulted in the 1% rent reduction not being applied between 2016 and 2020. In a separate issue, we also found that as a result of not re-registering fair rents, the maximum fair rent has been exceeded on at least 183 tenancies which means that residents have been overcharged.

A JRHT spokesperson said: “JRHT have recently undertaken a proactive review of all the rents we have charged our residents in recent years. During this review we have discovered that we have incorrectly categorised 89 properties as specialised supported housing which resulted in the 1% rent reduction not being applied between 2016 and 2020. In a separate issue, we also found that as a result of not re-registering fair rents, the maximum fair rent has been exceeded on at least 183 tenancies which means that residents have been overcharged.

“In all cases we will arrange for this money to be paid back, either directly to the resident or, if the rent is paid by Housing Benefit directly to the Local Authority.

“Some residents have already been made aware of this oversight and have had assurance that immediate action is being taken to correct it. We will be communicating with other residents over the coming weeks.”