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Original poster

To think Universal Credit are a bunch of cunts

263 replies

StarbucksStraw · 16/05/2024 21:28

I work full time but also claim Universal Credit.

They have awarded me £0 this month because two of my wages have fallen within one assessment period therefore to them, it looks like I have earned twice as much.

This happens several times a year because of how my wages are paid, each time I have to raise a dispute, they then "move" one lot of wages to a different assessment period and adjust my statement and pay me the outstanding amount. This is usually sorted within a few days but sometimes takes longer.

This time my payment is nearly three weeks overdue. I have no money left, all of my wages have been spent on rent, direct debits etc. Every time I ask them for an update I get fuck all.

How can they leave someone in this situation? They told me to ask the local authority for help but I've had no luck.

They already have the information from HMRC/ my employer showing when I was paid and how much. What the actual fuck do the expect people to do? I can't run my car to get to work on fresh air and I doubt my son wants to live off whatever stale shite is left in the cupboard for the next fuck knows how long.

I don't know what I'm hoping for from this post... anyone else had success in getting them to hurry up?

OP posts:
nothingsforgotten · 16/05/2024 22:51

Notfeelingtiptop · 16/05/2024 22:40

'Get a better job'

Yep because we don't need the lower paid roles in society at all do we? We can just do without them, you know shop assistants, care assistants, childcare workers, hospitality workers. They can all go and get a better job and then we'll just do without those services all together.

I've never noticed people having a problem with these services being provided, quite happy to use them, it's only a problem when the wages aren't enough and top ups are needed so that people aren't living under a bridge somewhere and actually available to do these jobs. Then it's all get a better job then.

Show quote history

I'm not in the UK and I don't actually understand UC. A person with a full time job here would be unlikely to get any sort of help, unless they had kids - and no, our minimum wage is not high, and things such as groceries etc. cost more, house prices high, rent high etc.

Lovinglife57 · 16/05/2024 22:51

EnglishBluebell · 16/05/2024 22:49

@Lovinglife57 Eh? I never said anything about being related to anyone??? I'm speaking for millions of people who have no choice but to rely on UC through no fault of their own. I don't need to know someone personally or be related(?!) to them to know what they're talking about.
I'm sick to death of Tory voters saying nonsense like the rubbish you've said on this thread. People living in poverty, or close to it, cannot just wait for things to right themselves. That was my point!

You have ypu opinions and I have mine sweetie

Original poster
StarbucksStraw · 16/05/2024 22:50

Notfeelingtiptop · 16/05/2024 22:40

'Get a better job'

Yep because we don't need the lower paid roles in society at all do we? We can just do without them, you know shop assistants, care assistants, childcare workers, hospitality workers. They can all go and get a better job and then we'll just do without those services all together.

I've never noticed people having a problem with these services being provided, quite happy to use them, it's only a problem when the wages aren't enough and top ups are needed so that people aren't living under a bridge somewhere and actually available to do these jobs. Then it's all get a better job then.

Show quote history

What's funny about this, is that I actually have a "better" job that I've spent years training for - I'm not in a minimum wage position, yet it's still not enough to get by on.

People make the assumption that those on benefits must all be part time cleaners or shelf - stackers (as if they don't also deserve to be paid enough to live on).

OP posts:
Raspberrymoon49 · 16/05/2024 22:49

Feel for you OP, regardless of those complaining about swearing (as if that’s the main issue), you have been left in an awful situation and as someone who’s living on next to nothing, I totally sympathise with you

EnglishBluebell · 16/05/2024 22:49

@Lovinglife57 Eh? I never said anything about being related to anyone??? I'm speaking for millions of people who have no choice but to rely on UC through no fault of their own. I don't need to know someone personally or be related(?!) to them to know what they're talking about.
I'm sick to death of Tory voters saying nonsense like the rubbish you've said on this thread. People living in poverty, or close to it, cannot just wait for things to right themselves. That was my point!

watchuswreckthemic · 16/05/2024 22:49

Like others I have a friend in the same situation. They work for the NHS who are constantly messing her wages up with an overpayment they want back. She has no control over this and neither do her bosses. She's constantly trying to have a reserve fund to pay back but has to survive. And yes I mean survive.

TheRealSlimShandy · 16/05/2024 22:47

Urgh the comments on this post.

I have a smallish business and we have a
PT employee who also has Uc and has run into this issue - we changed her pay dates. Appreciate this might not be possible if you’re at a larger organisation.

RaininSummer · 16/05/2024 22:46

K37529 · 16/05/2024 22:37

When I asked them about it they told me it was 5 weeks 🤔 well either way it is still crap system

Show quote history

When your claim starts there is a 5 week wait for first payment but after that the assessment periods are monthly.

Justrolledmyeyesoutloud · 16/05/2024 22:44

My friend is in this exact situation op

LakieLady · 16/05/2024 22:42

K37529 · 16/05/2024 22:29

An assessment period for universal credit is not one month, it’s 5 weeks. I used to have this a few times a year where they claimed I got paid twice that month but I didn’t, I got paid every 4 weeks, it is a crap system.

Show quote history

No it isn't, it's exactly one calendar month.

If you start a UC claim tomorrow, your assessment period will run from 17th of one month to the 16th of the subsequent month.

Four weeks is not a month (well, except for February, and even then it's only 3 Februaries out of 4). If it was, there would be 13 months in a year, not 12. The average length of a calendar month is 4.33 weeks.

Lovinglife57 · 16/05/2024 22:40

Lovinglife57 · 16/05/2024 22:40

So you actually speak on behalf of op are you actually related or know op personally …I’m on uc and live month to month so your point is …..l

Show quote history

Oh sorry

my god

Notfeelingtiptop · 16/05/2024 22:40

BeaRF75 · 16/05/2024 21:47

The UC staff are correct, because of the way your wages are paid. You are fortunate to be able to claim benefits, on top of working, so why not just average out the money and keep some back to cover the times of shortfall? Or get a new job that pays better, so you won't have to claim UC at all.......

'Get a better job'

Yep because we don't need the lower paid roles in society at all do we? We can just do without them, you know shop assistants, care assistants, childcare workers, hospitality workers. They can all go and get a better job and then we'll just do without those services all together.

I've never noticed people having a problem with these services being provided, quite happy to use them, it's only a problem when the wages aren't enough and top ups are needed so that people aren't living under a bridge somewhere and actually available to do these jobs. Then it's all get a better job then.

Lovinglife57 · 16/05/2024 22:40

EnglishBluebell · 16/05/2024 22:37

Really? You don't see the problem with bills going unpaid, stomachs going empty but it's ok because it will sort itself next month?!?! We don't all have money to fall back on! Some people actually have ZERO safety net through NO fault of their own.

My god

Show quote history

So you actually speak on behalf of op are you actually related or know op personally …I’m on uc and live month to month so your point is …..l

reluctantlogin · 16/05/2024 22:38

StarbucksStraw · 16/05/2024 21:28

I work full time but also claim Universal Credit.

They have awarded me £0 this month because two of my wages have fallen within one assessment period therefore to them, it looks like I have earned twice as much.

This happens several times a year because of how my wages are paid, each time I have to raise a dispute, they then "move" one lot of wages to a different assessment period and adjust my statement and pay me the outstanding amount. This is usually sorted within a few days but sometimes takes longer.

This time my payment is nearly three weeks overdue. I have no money left, all of my wages have been spent on rent, direct debits etc. Every time I ask them for an update I get fuck all.

How can they leave someone in this situation? They told me to ask the local authority for help but I've had no luck.

They already have the information from HMRC/ my employer showing when I was paid and how much. What the actual fuck do the expect people to do? I can't run my car to get to work on fresh air and I doubt my son wants to live off whatever stale shite is left in the cupboard for the next fuck knows how long.

I don't know what I'm hoping for from this post... anyone else had success in getting them to hurry up?

Rude. So won't listen. You may or may not have a point...

EnglishBluebell · 16/05/2024 22:37

Lovinglife57 · 16/05/2024 21:59

What you loose one month will make up for it the following month don’t see the problem here

Really? You don't see the problem with bills going unpaid, stomachs going empty but it's ok because it will sort itself next month?!?! We don't all have money to fall back on! Some people actually have ZERO safety net through NO fault of their own.

My god

K37529 · 16/05/2024 22:37

trickortrickier · 16/05/2024 22:31

An assessment period for universal credit is not one month, it’s 5 weeks

An Assessment Period is 1 calendar month not 5 weeks.

When I asked them about it they told me it was 5 weeks 🤔 well either way it is still crap system

LakieLady · 16/05/2024 22:37

StarbucksStraw · 16/05/2024 22:17

I got one wage at the end of March and one at the end of April. I haven't had extra wages, or anything paid early. I've been paid one wage each month. Not sure how much plainer I can make it for you, sweetie.

Show quote history

But you've been paid twice in one UC assessment period, and it's the assessment period that is the relevant timeframe for the calculation. For UC to take account of the myriad of different pay dates and periods employers use, it would be so massively complex it'd go wrong even more often.

Yours is a relatively unusual pattern of pay dates, I've only come across one similar since UC started. I also think it might be resolved if your employer followed the HMRC guidance with regard to always showing the pay date as the last day of the period the wages cover, rather than the actual date of payment.

I wonder what would happen if you closed your UC claim for a few days and reclaimed? It may be that if were canny about it, you could reclaim on a date earlier in the month, so that there would never be an assessment period where this happened. If so, it might be worth forgoing a few days of UC to prevent this happening if it's so difficult to manage.

It might be worth looking into. It's possible that there's a rapid reclaim process that reverts to the previous dates, though I think that's unlikely as it would involve paying you for days when you didn't actually have a live claim.

Underwatersally · 16/05/2024 22:35

Op have you thought of buying a magical oil lamp and rubbing it until a genie appears?

I just figured this suggestion was about as useful as some of the ones on here which have included just earn more money 🙄

I hope you get a resolution soon.

LauderSyme · 16/05/2024 22:35

I am sorry to hear of your struggles OP, having no money is soul destroying.

This is not a bug in the system. This is by design. When the Conservative government promises to deliver billions of pounds worth of cuts to working age benefits, OP's example is just one of the many ways in which they achieve it: off the backs of the working poor.

The Tories protect the rich at the expense of everyone else. It it what their party is for. The crying shame is that so many less well off people fall for their bullshit and vote them in time and time again.

trickortrickier · 16/05/2024 22:32

That first bit should have been in quotesBlush

RosaBaby2 · 16/05/2024 22:32

transformandriseup · 16/05/2024 22:26

It's not a good system if it can't cope with when a worker is paid, It isn't just staff who are paid every 4 weeks who are affected, I do the payroll at work and we usually pay early for Christmas due to the office closing but that means that an employee may have their UC stopped due to receiving "extra" pay within a pay period even though this is not the case.

This is why they ask you to report it as paid on the correct date. Same when payday is brought forward for a BH or a weekend. If its reported correctly it shouldn't affect the payment.

MrsDeathOfRats · 16/05/2024 22:32

Yes, certainly not to the people working there!

Probably low paid, claiming UC and getting screwed over by moving pay dates...

trickortrickier · 16/05/2024 22:31

An assessment period for universal credit is not one month, it’s 5 weeks

An Assessment Period is 1 calendar month not 5 weeks.

Colourofspring · 16/05/2024 22:30

I’ve only voted YANBU because I love overuse of the C word on here & how much it triggers some users 🤣