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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

To tell the bod on the tax credits helpline that they are a bloody disgrace!!

22 replies

SarahNoDosh · 16/12/2008 19:12

been waiting 7 weeks for them to process a new claim. First told it would take 2 weeks, then 3 weeks, then put in a complaint (3 weeks ago) and they have not even dealt with that either. Can not believe that they are so crap. They tell me different things then when I call back they tell me that I should not have been told that. Am going to explode with stress . Have not been able to pay my childcare for 4 weeks and will not be able take kids back after Xmas if bill is not paid.

OP posts:

bonnycat · 16/12/2008 19:15

YANBU they are indeed a disgrace,the whole thing is a shambles.

PersephoneSnape · 16/12/2008 19:47

take deep regular breaths! phone and ask if your case has been selected for compliance (fraud) checks, if it has, contact your MP as a matter of urgency. are you working? is it a new job? if so i might be able to point you in the right direction tomorrow (when i'm back at work and have access to my work-numbers.)

snigger · 16/12/2008 19:50

Have you just gone from joint to single claim by any chance?

May be a problem matching child details - there's been a hold up with this lately, if it's being handled as a complaint it should be processed soon.

CrackopentheBaileys · 16/12/2008 19:56

snigger and persephonesnape, do you work at tax credits? sorry to hijack your thread sarah

Wallace · 16/12/2008 19:58

SNAP

They stopped ours by mistake. We phoned they said it was being sorted and money would be in the bank by the middle of the next week.

We waited, but no money came. Phoned again. They said that we had to wait 4 weeks before they even re-assess it. That will be on 28th December.

Cheers guys for a lovely Christmas

PersephoneSnape · 16/12/2008 20:22

baileys, like i'd admit that! last time i told people here what i did for a living i was asked how i could sleep at night! :hmm:

theres a lot of people in tax credits offices snowed under with claims, economic downturn etc and i genuinely think the majority of staff work very hard for scant reward - that said, there have been notable HUGE frauds of the tax credits sytem (not saying for a minute...)and innocent people get caught in the crossfire because a percentage of new claims are checked very VERY throughly at random.

I woprk for job-centre plus (burn the witch!) - i obviously have an interest in child poverty, (single parnet myself) which I'm currently trying to change into a specialism. we have a liaison unit that can sometimes speed things through for customers if they go via their lone parnet adviser and stress that there is a possibility of losing a job because if tax credit hold-ups. the guy has changed name recently, but i'll try and find it out tomorrow for you if you're kind of under our remit type thing. then you'd just need to ask lone parent adviser to contact him.

PersephoneSnape · 16/12/2008 20:24

ugh typos. apols,

snigger · 16/12/2008 20:25

I may..... but the first person who raises it off this thread is getting flamed

CrackopentheBaileys · 16/12/2008 20:36

pmsl

Original poster

SarahNoDosh · 16/12/2008 20:37

Yep, DP left in August but I did not tell them until Oct when he stopped paying the mortgage. Did not get anything before then, the 40.00 a month we were entitled to went towards an overpayment.

They keep saying that they do not need any further information which is what is making me mad and that they can see no reason for it not to go through. If it had been selected for compliance checks would'nt they have contacted me by now?

OP posts:

PersephoneSnape · 16/12/2008 20:46

compliance can be sneaky-compliance sometimes when 'we' do generalised data matching with bank accounts etc to see if what 'you' tell 'us' is likely. in your circumstances though, it would be more likely that they would ask you for clarification straight out...

might be worth you trying to get an appointment with the NDLP adviser at the jobcentre anyway, as a pre-emptive strike. or threaten MP involvement, find out his/her contact details from parliament website and really stress that you will be out of a job if this isn't sorted PDQ.

who do you work for? part time or full time? how old are DCs? any chance of short term parental leave in respect of DCs?

for your situation - you're trying to do the best you can , when you'll probably still be a bit raw from XP leaving.

Original poster

SarahNoDosh · 16/12/2008 21:25

DCs are almost 5, 7 and 9. I work fulltime so pay for before and afterschool care. It has been really hard on my own though and have thought about quitting work and doing what I thought I never thought I'd do and go on the dole but have been told that if I quit work voluntarily I may not get any benefits? If you work for the Job Centre is that right? Can you see a Lone Parent advisor if you're working? If I was getting the tax credits I'd probably be managing.

I have already had time off work through stress for obvious reasons and am loathe to take anymore.

OP posts:

PersephoneSnape · 16/12/2008 21:43

you wouldn't have any benefits lost as a result of leaving voluntarily as (at the moment) you'd be able to claim income support rather than job seekers allowance - but then there wouldn't be the support to try and find a new job once tax credits sorted out. is your employer flexible at all? could you leave earlier one or two days a week, reducing your childcare after school bill? could you take salary sacrifice for your pre/post school care? then you're not reliant on tax credits for childcare...let your childcare provider now what is hapenning. any possibility of parnetyal/annual leave while you're trying to sort this out?

not sure if you can see a lone parent adviser if you're working at the mo, but i'll find out for you.

i have three dcs and work full time - i agree, not easy. things can easily get the better of you, particularly if you're prone to stress and have enough to do already . write yourself a list - phone tax credits ppl first thing tomorrow for an update. ask to speak to team leader or complaints section if you get nowhere. keep records of who you speak to, times names etc. contact MP, I'll check out if you can go via jobcentre and report back in the morning. keep childcare provider updated as well.

(i'm off to bed (have bad cough!) will be in work tomorrow and will report back chin up - not alone.

Original poster

SarahNoDosh · 16/12/2008 21:46

Thanks Perse

OP posts:

snigger · 16/12/2008 21:46

Call back, Sarah, ask them to check the date the application was received, ask exactly what is holding it up, and if told "nothing visible", ask politely but firmly, and consistently, to be passed to a team leader - to be honest, polite and firm gets a lot more empathy from advisers than "You fg useless bunch of you *** up my claim" - it's like waiting for a bus, it's not nice, but there's usually a reason if it's late, and raging at the driver is unlikely to encourage them to go the extra mile for you....

Hope it's sorted out for you soon, it's frustrating for advisers too when claims don't process smoothly for people who patently need them to.

boredveryverybored · 16/12/2008 21:47

Agree to asking about compliance. If you've waited so long for claim to be processed and you're being told different things each time you call that's where my bet would be (was tc officer) when there is compliance on a claim the advisors on the phone are not allowed to tell you about it so will have to come up with standard 'we apologise it is being dealt with' crap and many will give all kinds of reasons this could happen to keep customer happy.
Speaking from experience is V V V hard to have to come up with crap to tell people when you know exactly whats happening but you're not allowed to say.

Original poster

SarahNoDosh · 16/12/2008 22:30

Thanks for that Snigger and Bored - will call them again tomorrow and yes - I will be polite this time.

I have continually asked them if they need more information (bank statements, bills etc) but keep getting told No. Just my bloody luck if I am being investigated. I don't understand why they need to hold up the claim though. They have said that the claim does not need further 'verification' though so if I am not being investigated, I'd still like to know why it's taking so bloody long .

OP posts:

PersephoneSnape · 17/12/2008 09:50

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

PersephoneSnape · 17/12/2008 13:32

strikes me you're at work and we might pass like ships in the night I have someone who will try to help, I need your full name, DOB and NINO, address and childrens names, DOB s etc. I've out my work email up, so you know that your information is going through a secure server etc. If you're not happy to do that ( I understand fully, you don't know me from adam..)

The other possibility, and one I reccomend for anyone else having problems (because I'm not really meant to try and circumnavigate the department and fix individual tax credit problems - one or two is OK, but i can't set a precedent or I'd never get anyof my actual work done...) is to contact your local authoritys welfare department. apparently most social services depts have a 'hotline' to tax credits which is treated pretty much like an MPs enquiry.

I do hope that helps.

Wallace · 17/12/2008 16:37

Thank you, we might give that a try

PersephoneSnape · 17/12/2008 16:58

Hope it helps wallace, please post how you get on.

Original poster

SarahNoDosh · 18/12/2008 16:23

Well finally called the tax credits again this PM (rudely awoken by DS1 puking all over my bedroom carpet at 3.00am yesterday with a sickness bug that DD and myself promptly came down with as well by the morning!)

Apparently my claim is not with compliance, there was a 'system error' which is completely their fault and someone is looking into it now but I should not worry as the claim will be backdated but they still cannot tell me how much longer it will take .

Unbelievable. I think I will give them another week and then contact my MP.

OP posts:

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