AIBU to think my friend, and people in a similar situation should pay some of their benefits back?

[SortedSue]

I’m not jealous, I’ve got a good job and money which I’ve worked for.

I’ve know someone who has been working part-time through choice and playing the system, who has inherited a lot of money.

She’s not broken the law, she’s told the DHSS and signed off. She’s bought a house outright, paid her pension contributions up to date, and made some investments to give herself an income. But she’s stopped working completely so she’ll never pay tax and put anything back.

And I think that’s fucking wrong.

What has she done wrong? I can't see why you're getting bent out of shape.

"We hate it when our friends become successful". Sometimes Morrissey gets human nature spot on.

Hahahahahahaha.

1/10 for effort.

everone pays tax working or not plus she has her own house so need for benefit payments towards rent or housing. I fail to see the problem.

DHSS - thanks for that, I've now got the Wham Rap going round in my head!

Yes I don't think this would be a bad idea. People paying back benefits when they come into a large amount of money but it's never going to happen. In other countries benefits aren't available unless people have actually paid into the system.

There's no way unless it was her husband that died that she won't pay any inheritance tax, unless it was under a certain amount.

So anything under £325,000 would be tax free and from a parent £425k. Anything above that and it's 40%

I'll never be able to pay back what I've taken out of the system.

My education, my healthcare including 4 operations and 2 births, any pension I will receive, and I was on unemployment benefits for 3 years.

I'd say hardly anyone does tbh.

Floyd I read your comment wrong and now habe wig wham bam as an ear worm!

I still rush home to see if there are any letter from distant relatives telling me I’ve inherited some money 😂

Not everyone pays tax. Fact.

Eh? What has she done wrong?

Normally when people rush to say "you sound jealous" I tend to think they are just looking for a way to devalue someone's argument. But in this case I must say....you sound jealous.

She sounds very sensible actually. Good luck to her!

Some people are very good at avoiding tax Mike but you'd have to be completely self sufficient to not pay any tax at all. You pay VAT on most things for a start

Maybe the plus side is your friend has used the money wisely and will never need benefits again is a very big positive in this situation.
It’s not like she did anything wrong, she was supported by benefits when she needed them,

Do you have any idea how many people in her situation would have tried to keep their benefits whilst enjoying the money?

You honestly don’t sound like a friend, this isn’t friendly “fire” it’s nasty, she’s obviously had someone dear who’s died. How about concentrating on how she’s dealing with the loss?

The government seem to be heading the way of loans rather than benefits !
From April this year if you fall ill then any help towards the interest on your mortgage will be paid as a loan ( with interest to be paid back on top ! ), rather than the benefit it currently is.
Maybe this will gradually become the case for other benefits too ? Nothing would surprise me.

And maybe when children inherit their parents savings which are made up of years worth of unused Attendance Allowance they should pay that back too ?

She will be paying vat, council tax, road fund, petrol tax, tobacco tax if she smokes, alcohol tax if she drinks, airport tax if she flies abroad, stamp tax on her house.

they have more ways to make you pay than income tax you know!

The vast majority of people receive more from the state than they pay. Even if you never need to claim benefits. It’s the cost of your birth, all the nhs treatment you’ve ever received including opticians and dental for children, your state education, the birth of your children and their education, any time you’ve beem unlucky enough to require assistance from police or fire brigade or mountain rescue.

She’s done exactly what she’s supposed to by declaring it. If she’s earning enough income from investments to live on she’ll be paying tax on it.

I don't understand what she has done wrong, can you explain more clearly OP?

If I understand correctly, this person has inherited a large amount of money, and intends to live off an income from investments and interest.

She will pay tax on this income unless it is very small, so why are you saying she will never pay tax? Also, she will pay tax every time she buys anything with VAT added.

You really don't like her and are terribly jealous, that much is clear. The rest of your post is not so clear.

She’s hasn’t got anything to pay back. If she’d been claiming benefits while secretly having another income that would be a problem but this isn’t the case.
As others have said she’ll pay tax in other ways.

I understand what the Op is driving at - this bit I’ve know someone who has been working part-time through choice and playing the system - we all know someone who plays the system - I have a friend who has done exactly this - perfectly capable of working a standard 37.5 or 40 hour week on a reasonable salary - but its is more economically viable for her to work 4 days a week instead of 5, and she gets more tax credits than if she worked. Ditto her partner has dropped from 40 hours per week to 14 in order to claim tax credits. It reprehensible that people are allowed to do this.

The system is broken and needs to be fixed

"working part-time through choice and playing the system"?
what do you mean by this, exactly?

I think you're overall premise is wrong OP. She will have been paying tax and NI when she was working, entitling her to benefits. She will pay tax on income from investments and savings. She is not claiming now.

What a very bitter and ugly attitude.

You do sound angry and bitter, but I can see why. It seems like some people just get one lucky break after another in life. I know one woman who has had an inheritance from THREE different relatives in 7 years. Mother (left her a house worth £200K,) her brother (never married, left her £55K,) and her gran (left her £33K.) We have never been left a plastic fucking vase by any fucker.

In addition, my friend at work who is 25, and been with her fiance for 5 years, has just had his mom and dad sell them one of their houses (that they bought as buy-to-lets in the 1990's,) for a fucking POUND. So both in their mid 20's they have a £200K 4 bed detached house in a cul de sac, all paid for, no mortgage. The house was £55K, and the mortgage was paid off last month.

I mean, good for her and him, and I don't resent THEM for it, but we just never got any lucky breaks like that - EVER. We have seen people around us getting lucky break after lucky break, and people on benefits, be given social housing with free rent, free council tax, free carpets and furniture, and free dental care and free prescriptions, while we had to fork out for everything ourselves; mortgage, house repairs, you fucking name it.

Unfortunately, we were never very high earners, but always earned too much to claim anything or get any handouts. In this country, you are better off well off (like on 6 figures between you,) or just plain fucking poor, so you get given stuff and get everything paid for.

Before the 'you sound bitter' chestnut get blabbed, so what? I have a right to be.

The OP's post reminded me of a case a few years back of several 100 women who worked as carers and cleaners for Birmingham council. Someone investigated their pay grade, and they were all on about half what they should have been. So their wages went up from £15K a year to £33K (or thereabouts!)

THEN, they all got between 7 and 10 years pay backdated. A few dozen of them got over £100K backpay. In fact I think Birmingham council had to sell the NEC to pay it all to them.

Basically, history was re-written, and their previous 7-10 years wages were re-written as £33K.

Now in MY opinion, any state benefits and tax credits they had had, during those 7-10 years, (and many of them did GET them,) should have been repaid. If I had been in charge, I would have made sure every last woman paid back every single benefit they had been paid, as their last 7-10 years salary(s) had been re-written IYSWIM.

So they basically had low pay, got loads of tax credits and benefits (to 'top them up') for 7-10 years, and then got their salary doubled, and got a £50K to £100K handout, without having to pay a fucking PENNY back of all the years of handouts.

Wrong, very wrong.

And as I said, I don't give a shit if I sound bitter or catty or jealous. I have a right to this view.

As for the woman the OP is going on about. It's a similar scenario as the Birmingham council women, but not exactly the same. And I am not sure how she can pay everything back (in the same manner that the Birmingham Council women should have IMO.) As @fittontower said

She's been working, I assume claiming the tax credits she is completely entitled too and has now inherited enough money to never work again - so will have paid a chunk of inheritance tax on that. She will have paid stamp duty, she pays VAT on her purchases, pays her council tax, depending on the size of the investments will pay capital gains tax down the line maybe (although I don't really understand how that works), she'll pay car tax, tax when she flies, tax on her fuel.

And at least she won't be claiming any more benefits.

And people can say NONE OF YOUR FUCKING BUSINESS til they are blue in the face, but you have a right to be miffed. Ignore the people saying this. They would probably feel the same. As I said though, she hasn't really done anything wrong, and doesn't really need to pay anything back.

She has just been very clever with how she has played the system. Many people have done this though. (as @newyearnewme said on the previous page.) It does happen, and it is annoying when you have worked very hard for many years, and got fuck-all given to you - ever.

And yeah, the system needs an overhaul, to stop people playing the system.