LESBIAN Claire Taylor was refused benefits after being accused of living in sin with her gay male flatmate.

The 19-year-old was forced to "come out" to her parents because she was so desperate for money after being turned down for benefits.

Her nightmare began when she moved in to share a flat in Gateshead, Tyneside, with gay friend Jeff Hollingsworth, 24. The pair slept in separate bedrooms.

But when jobless Miss Taylor applied for housing benefit and jobseekers' allowance, she was refused money by the Benefits Agency, which concluded they were common-law husband and wife.

She said: "Jeff and I had no reason to believe I would be turned down for benefits because we were both gay. There was no question of us living as man and wife. I am not attracted to men and Jeff is not attracted to women."

Miss Taylor was forced to take out a social services crisis loan to keep her going before being accepted back at her parents' Jarrow home.

Mr Hollingsworth, 24, now living with his partner in the Gateshead flat, said: "The most upsetting thing is that the Benefits Agency were accusing me of being something that I am not."

Miss Taylor now lives alone in Longbenton and has a job in customer care for Newcastle bank Northern Rock.

She is appealing against the Benefits Agency decision to refuse her handouts.

A tribunal hearing held in Newcastle this week was adjourned for eight weeks before a final decision is made.

Miss Taylor said: "It's not the money that's important. What I am fighting against is the idea that a gay man and woman who live together cannot claim benefits separately."

A spokeswoman for the Benefits Agency said: "We cannot comment on this individual case until the appeals tribunal has been settled."