AIBU to really fucking hate universal credit.

[Shootfirstaskquestionslater]

I got a letter today telling me that they have over paid me by £70 which means that I have to pay it back which means even less money for me to live off every month because they keep finding ways to screw me over. I can't afford to feed myself so I am now having to go to the food bank and I'm having to sell stuff to get money together to try and pay bills and get some food in for the freezer. I feel so pissed off and annoyed with the whole thing I'm too ill to work and now they keep finding ways to kick me in the teeth and remind me how low I've sunk. I hate living like this.

OP your bills seem high. £45 talktalk plus £25 phone bill. Thats £70 a month. Can you get that down? Do you need both?
Gas, elec, water seem right.
I hope someone will help you. Shocking system now. Glad i dont need it, a disabled family member does and it is a disgrace.

Ooh, I've just discovered that I can still access a benefit advisers forum, 3 years after I changed jobs. I found this:

"Communication delays and failures between the DWP and local authority may result in ‘duplicate payments’ of HB and UC housing costs for the same period. The HB payments are treated as income and deducted from the claimant’s UC (see above). They may be recovered as an overpayment of UC if they were not actually deducted from the claimant’s UC award for the assessment period in which they were paid. Note that they are not treated as HB over-payments, so there is no scope for arguing that they are not recoverable under HB regulations due to ‘official error’."

Providing that the 2 payments dovetail as in my previous post, you have NOT been given a duplicate payment but a late payment, so the provision referred to in that extract should not apply.

Otoh, if there's an overlap in the period covered, then you have to swallow it, I'm afraid. But I would get onto your MP, it seems against all the principles of natural justice that claimants should suffer hardship because the DWP can't tell councils to close HB claims in a timely manner. All this stuff is done electronically, ffs.

Uc is horrible unfair and impossible to administer. I work for DWP and we have constantly raised concerns but are not listened to. The whole system is a nightmare and should be scrapped. I am sorry OP I wish I could help. My son has to claim benefit and I live in fear that when I am eventually gone he will end up freezing to death under a bridge because of our horrible inadequate uncaring vile system.

Lakielady thank you I will have to check am pretty sure though that I started the claim on 16th January and the last lot of HB was put in to my bank account on 18th January and I received no more money from them after that. So I think I might have to just suck it up and pay it off. Thank you so much for that information that's really helped.

bostonkremekrazy the talktalk is phone internet and a t.v. box but I don't use the phone so I could see if they would be willing to drop it down for me and get rid of the phone my phone bill is SIM only and that was a deal that I was offered back when I could afford it I use my mobile all the time but I could try and see if O2 would be willing to drop it down for me but I don't know if they would and it's going up from April. The money I got doesn't even cover all of my bills.

deblet the whole thing is a piss take and it really needs looking at again before people end up homeless and starving because of the system. I hope that never happens to your son.

Phone your providers shootfirst. They may well drop your tarif if you explain you dont need that package and you cant afford it anyways.

bonstonkremekrazy I'm going to and see if they would be willing to drop it down for me.

My son is going through the same thing,he only gets £73 a week, and suddenly having £47 a month coming out of his money, the explanation?
This is from 7 years ago, ! he had a son living with him, when the son left he notified tax credits, they say because he cancelled it a month too late, they want the whole years money back, which he was entitled too, exept for that one month, he obviously couldnt cancel until his son left,
It is terrible it is happening to a lot of people going back years
Have a look at wwwlegalbeagles,they give good advice

Shoot sorry got mixed up with tax credits,its them who are taking money off my son,but its being taken from his UC,and its over £1100

@Shootfirstaskquestionslater Sorry for late reply!

Yes if you are placed into either LCW or LCWRA then the fit notes stop and I think the Work Coach thing stops if you go into LCW. I was put into LCWRA which is the most severely disabled element so I don't have to do anything at all. No fit notes, no visits to Jobcentre (so far, Touch Wood!); they (supposedly) just leave you alone once you're in LCWRA.

I suggest you keep pestering them about getting the assessment done. They can really drag their feet. Was 8 months in total for me from beginning to end. However I was given backdated payments up until the end of my assessment period which was 3 months after I claimed. So I was given 5 months payments backdated for an 8 month wait.
However, bear in mind that if you took an advanced payment from UC when you first claimed OR you have any deductions (such as the HB thing), then they will take this off any overpayment they give you. Don't worry about that right now though x

talk talk can be got for very little you can get a tarrif got internet with anytime calls for much less than £45 with anytime free phones calls.about ££22 a month .ring them. They are very good and might offer you as better deal
If you were a drug addict you would be better off..I know someone who gets £900 a month FACT

Really lovemylover and it was an actual FACT !

Sorry for the late replies everyone.

Motherofasurvivor thank you I will keep pestering the life out of them until they sort this mess out and I will ask about the assesment.

lovemylover I will speak to them about lowering my tariff. Yeah somehow my neighbourghs are getting away with fiddling the system and get hell and all or so they say not sure how much of what they say is the truth and how much of it is made up.

MyDcAreMarvel yes its true, he also has a free flat and just has to pay bills, and yes its a fact,i know because he is a relative, and i think its disgusting, when my son has only £73 a week coming in on UC
Because he also has mental health problems, caused by drugs and alcohol, he gets this, as do other drug and alcohol users, he is unable to work as he has seizures ,
I dont agree with it at all, as soon as he gets his money, he blows it on clothes and drugs and alcohol,
I was also told, but not sure if this is true or not that druggies who have dogs get extra money for dog food

Should have said this is ESA at the moment but will eventually drop down to UC, but still disgusting as it is now
He is in for a shock

I'm so sorry this is happening to you op. Universal credit is absolutely disgusting. Once it's all kicked in properly which i think is 2022 how many people will have to die before this government realised what a monumental fuck up it is? I'm due to qualify next year and honestly if it wasn't for my family I'd leave this country. The rich keep taking and the poor just get fucked over at every opportunity

@Shootfirstaskquestionslater Sorry I only just found your PM. Have replied. Happy to help if I can x

Do you have a spare room? You could see if you could get a lodger. I know people could have them at £80-85 per week (a few years ago now) and didn't have to declare them but I don't know how that works if on bens.

I'd assume they would want to know all about it and deduct the amount from your payments based on all the other cunty things they do on this thread.

From a post upthread, I take it OP only has to get through this month on £111? I hope you get some help from somewhere OP.

PLEASE IGNORE THE AMOUNTS ~embarrassed face~

@Shootfirstaskquestionslater Have you logged in to the Journal? You should have a breakdown of payments like this....

To be fair though, the amounts are standard across the board. Not exactly secret 🤷🏼‍♀️

Also, do NOT get a lodger as a PP suggested below!!! You will lose your Housing Element from your Universal Credit

So the ones that DID take any advice to take in a lodger to offset the bedroom tax are about to get rinsed?

Bedroom Tax only applies in social housing

Oh and Bedroom tax is just a reduction in Housing Benefit. Having a lodger means you lose Housing benefit. Also, sub Letting is very very VERY rarely permitted. Whether in social or private

motherofasurvior this what I've got

motherofasurvivor