Universal Credit WTF?

[CoolCarrie]

Just watching a young woman who had to wait 6 fucking weeks to get her money, so lost her child's nursery place and her job!

It's a fucking disgrace and hopefully May's own side will rebel

There is no tick box for UC on the back of the prescription form so people are being told to tick JSA and then getting fined.

Everyone on anything this govt deems a benefit (and I don't put it past them to change the rules to inc child benefit) is to be changed over by 2019 April I think.

No.
This is false.

From www.entitledto.co.uk/help/Universal-Credit-Pilot

“...Once the full service roll out for new claims is complete, existing benefit claimants who have not had a change in circumstances, will be moved over to Universal Credit at some point between July 2019 and March 2022...”

There are ppl not going for repeat scripts due to the fear of getting fined (because they have seen it happen to others) now if more ppl get ill because of this more pressure will be put on hospitals during peak flu season.

From www.nhs.uk/NHSEngland/Healthcosts/Pages/universal-credit.aspx

“...Not all help with health costs claim forms have a tick box for Universal Credit. If that's the case, you should tick the box for income-based Jobseeker's Allowance instead...”

I have at no point disagreed with the fact that there are hideous problems with the changeover to UC btw, there are, and it’s appalling.

However, some of the ‘facts’ that are being promulgated are patently untrue.

Faith someone in the group did as you said and was slapped with £103.20 fine.

Someone else got slapped with a £60 and a £95 fine.

Took 8 months for me. I nearly had to give my daughter up

£125 fine.

2 fines totalling over £190

Protecting

I believe the gradual rollout ISN'T to fix mistakes BUT so that there aren't huge numbers of people across the country facing the shit storm at the same time and causing an uprising - which is exactly what happened with the poll tax - they're not daft!

Oh my god. I think you’re right.

gluteustothemaximus

Spot on!

www.theguardian.com/society/2017/oct/14/universal-credit-flaw-hits-free-school-meals?CMP=share_btn_fb

"Under universal credit, which combines several old benefits into a single payment, the “trigger” for working out which families are entitled to a free school meal has been removed. However, the system’s design means there is no obvious way of putting a new trigger in place.

The Resolution Foundation thinktank is warning that ministers face having to either cut back free meals or give them to all children whose parents receive universal credit. The latter expansion would cover an additional 1.7 million children at a cost of up to £600m a year.

Currently, the children of parents who receive working tax credit are entitled to a free meal. There is no such threshold built into the universal credit system. The government could not explain how the issue would be fixed, saying only that details would be released “in due course”

At DWP we would get faxed 10 local national insurance numbers once a month to check, for receipt of benefit, as shown on prescription, all done, by the lowest and least trained of staff.

If UV uses a different system and not everyone/all staff has access to it that is where the problem lies. But as usual the ones who are the worst off suffer

"David Finch, senior economic analyst at the Resolution Foundation, said: “Implementing such an ambitious reform was always going to be hard, and there are bound to be teething problems. But inevitable implementation challenges are different to straightforward design flaws.

The free school meal design issue is one of many to address before millions of people are moved to the new system.
David Finch, Resolution Foundation
“One big question that needs answering is the extent to which families on universal credit will receive free school meals. Depending on what the government decides, it could either mean a massive expansion of free meals, costing around £600m a year by the time [the new system] is fully rolled out, or a scaling back of the programme, with some working families losing their entitlement as a result."

Helenaone of many flaws that are yet to be uncovered and all hitting the children already in poverty stricken homes

Its a massive MASSIVE mess.

I'm dreading moving over to UC. The fact that my disability benefit is called Employment Support Allowance instead of, I don't know, anything to do with disability says a lot. The way disabled people are treated is appalling, medicals from bloody physiotherapists with very little training on particularly mental health issues and so many lies and the sheer amount of refusals turned over at appeal. So many compliance interviews which cause immense amounts of stress, having to send bank account details and account for every penny. If I could I'd do anything not to have another humiliating medical but no choice at all. I'm in the process of yet another compliance thing, so 2 letters sent to me, numerous calls trying to get through and arrange a phone instead of office interview as I can't physically attend, an hour phone interview then whatever time for the officer to write it up, time for more calls and then send in my paperwork, then review- all this money spent to check up 3-4 times a year, so much stress for me. Bleugh, this system sucks.

Free school meals are administered by the council.
In my area UC is a qualifying benefit for free school meals according to the local council website:

“...Free school meals are offered to children whose parents receive:

Income Support
income based Employment & Support Allowance
income based Jobseekers Allowance
support under part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
the Guaranteed element of State Pension Credit
Child Tax Credit provided your annual income as assessed by the Inland Revenue does not exceed £16,190 and provided that Working Tax Credit is not included.
Working Tax Credit run-on - paid for 4 weeks after you stop qualifying for Working Tax Credit
Universal Credit...”

from twitter.

Sadie 🌹‏ @crazysadie_92 Oct 4
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@jessphillips just got lumbered with a £134.40 NHS charge as Universal credit isn't on prescriptions yet, oh the joys

They may have been issued a fine, but they can point out the error & it will be rescinded.

The link I posted earlier re the prescription form is the nhs website - it’s the official position re which box to check if no UC box.

Faith that is not the bloody point. Its the stress of getting the fine letter in the first place. Imagine someone with a heart problem getting one of those letters? Stress can and does exacerbate illness.

And UC has been in some areas for a while now so why havent the back of scripts been updated to reflect this.

And i told you Faith that many have followed that advice and been fined.

I have definitely read that child benefit will eventually be rolled into Universal Credit, but I can't find the link. It's not scaremongering because it's definitely been announced. However, this doesn't mean it will happen immediately, or at all.

For me, the worst thing is the minimum income floor for the self employed, who will get nothing or practically nothing after their first year on UC. I hope this changes.

And i told you Faith that many have followed that advice and been fined.

I know that, which is why I posted the link - so if you know people who have been wrongly fined you can direct them to the official nhs guidance which says to check the JSA box, and so help them to contest the fine with the relevant info.

I myself get free school meals & prescriptions (although I’m not on UC as I’m an existing CTC claimant)
I’m on such a low income that I don’t pay tax.
I get it, how shit it is - believe me.