To think Universal Credit are a bunch of cunts

[StarbucksStraw]

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?

Some absolutely clueless replies on here as usual. Sorry OP.
YANBU.

Are you paid 4 weekly?

If so, they may have moved payments to another assessment period the maximum number of times possible. Being paid 4 weekly you'll get 13 lots of wages a year so there will always be one month where this happens and you get £0 UC due to 'double wages' in a month - transferring a payment to the next assessment period is just kicking the can down the road, it has to catch up eventually.

But, the fact I'm not understanding the issue aside, they are a bloody nightmare to deal with.
I took the same piece of paperwork in to them 3 times before they finally agreed they'd seen it! And they are practically impossible to get hold of.

YABU. Yes, it may be inconvenient to have to make a few calls, but UC is a huge help to an enormous number of people. Why call them names when they are helping YOU every month?

The "way of dealing with it" is specified in the regulations, it's not the fault of the staff or managers processing it.

If you want the regulations changed, that's a matter for politicians, so raise it with your MP.

I work in welfare rights, so it's rare for me to defend the DWP (I spend half my working life challenging them for stuff they've done wrong), but you can't blame the staff for this.

Blimey is the Tory conference? The replies on here are clueless. I feel for you OP they make it so stressful/such hard work. The system is barbaric.

Should say is this the Tory conference?

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

Sounds very stressful OP. Is there any way your employer could give you an advance until your UC is paid? What a rubbish situation to be in.

Blimey people on here are so sanctimonious.

OP has every right to call them a bunch of cunts.
It is a system designed by dickheads who KNEW about these pitfalls long in advance of it going live. It's a shit system. They couldn't give a fuck about the people needing it.
Everyone telling OP to plan ahead, spread it out etc... you can spread what you haven't got.

I used to be in this position and it's all to do with the tax point of payroll. In a previous job my tax point used to be moved around depending on pay day. In my current role the tax point is always the last working day. Ergo, I never have this now.
But when I did have it, it was a nightmare.

OP, I hear you. Bunch of cunts.

That's not true and that's why you don't see the problem.

My employer is the government, and I still get a UC top up. Hope that helps....

I absolutely agree with you. The whole system is rigged to make the rich even richer at the expense of the taxpayers

My job isn't even that badly paid - I work full time and not on minimum wage. At the moment there are no better paid jobs available to me, even if it was as easy as just walking into one.

It hasn't been because of a bank holiday or anything like that - we get paid on the last Friday of the month, so not on a set date. @AuroraAnimal I don't get paid 4 weekly but I have had to ask them to "move" my wage more than once - if that is what's wrong, why haven't they just said so instead of just saying they have no update?

I don't have enough left over at the end of each month to save enough to cover the shortfall when this happens 3 or 4 times a year. I do my best to let them know as early as possible when I've worked out it will happen, but they absolutely refuse to take it into account ahead of time.

They have been completely unhelpful - I've asked for it to be escalated and they told me someone would get back to me by 6pm on X date, nobody did. They ignore my journal messages, I'm just at a loss as to what else I can do.

This is a shit comment. Totally unhelpful and rude.

Try providing a service for the government, being paid termly by the government, but being told by the government that you must earn more on the months you have zero pay, and getting zero UC on the months you get paid four months pay 🤯

(Attitude is to the government, not you OP. Agree with you.)

Well if you get double wages in December because you get January wages early …you won’t get anything in January and up makes up for it

I'm not getting anything early.

No because even if you earn nothing, they assume you have earned a certain figure (mine is £1600) and just pay UC based on that.

When you first applied why didn't you choose a date a week either side of the 23rd of the month?

It doesn't fix it's self though as you would have 2 work allowances if you have it recalculated (RTI) but only one if you leave it.

Yes they are awful. I'm on a low wage and I got back dated payrise
They took my uc away that month.
I had to cycle to foodbanks

You don't get to choose a UC date. It goes on when you apply and that isn't info they give you up front

2 wages paid ???

How is she "fortunate" to be living in an economy and a political environment in which wages are low and the cost of living high? It's not "fortunate" to need top ups because wages are inadequate.

An average person on an average wage should be able to pay average live and survive without top ups.

As for the hackneyed old chestnut "get a better paid job", where do you imagine we would be if everybody abandoned routine employment for much better paid roles. We do actually NEED, admin staff, service staff, retail staff etc, but we expect them to act as tagged trouser philanthropists, propping everything up on an unsurvivable wage.