pls help Child Benefit rejected ?

[feelingsik]

I applied for CB and WTC June 2011. While WTC did take till december 2011 to be awarded, luckily backdated to 1st June 2011, two months ago I received a letter from Child Benefit Office to state I was not entitled "as it was impossible to trace my child as living in the uk" ... I have since then called and written to them but the only answer I get is that "the claim is under review but there is not a time scale for them to give me a decision".
I wrote to local mp to no avail.
Can anyone advice on where to take a formal complain to get to the bottom of this? I am worried about loosing out 13 months. Tbh I am in such strain that the back payment would be a godsend. SLightly panicking now.
Thank you

just to add I did wrote that child has always lived with me, I am a single mum, dont get any maintanace from totally absent father, not relatives in uk, child always been at school and GP registered...DC was just born abroad

Why can't they trace your child? Does he/she live with you?

Sorry x-post, could you have letters sent from school and gp confirming this?

of course he does. It became clear to be they assumed he did not only because 3 months ago they sent me a long form to fill up - which I did - with question about my country of origin and grand parents. Otherwise I had not clue why there was such delay all together

I wrote to say do they need GP and School letters but they said no need we have taken note and update but Claim Under Review and No Time Scale, repeted to me as a mantra

Could you try your MP, see if there is anything they can do to help? My MP sorted out a delay I had with tax credits.

Glad to hear that MP do actually help someone, I wrote a few times got nowhere. Maybe I picked wrong person? I do I find out which name I should write to? What do I search for?

You can find out who your MP is here

Your MP should have a drop-in surgery, this may be more effective than writing. Take all of your info with you.

You could also get some advice from the CAB - they could make some calls on your behalf.

Good Luck

Oh you are so right, I found the correct MP, he runs a drop in Surgery at the w/e but closed during month of august - I'll try calling on monday.

There is a limit to back dating CB, but (I think) it is 3 months from when you make the claim so as long as they are not disputing that you made your claim in June 2011, and you can demonstrate the child has been in UK, then you should be in line for a hefty back payment. Ask you MP to include this point in any action s/he takes on your behalf.

No, no no no no!
You can claim back Child Benefit as far back as you can prove that they messed up. After a 3yr fight I got back all of the CB plus interest owed to me for DS2.

Elevate the complaint to a 'level2' complaint on the phone-insist on speaking to a supervisor. If they say "no" repeat in a mantra-like fashion;
"So you are refusing to pass me on to the senior member of staff as I requested." Remain calm and polite
Ask for the data protection address because you intend to write to them to get the transcripts of all of your conversations with them. Write in to them (always get it signed for) and express your disgust at the way you have/are being treated and tell them that if you don't get a response from them within 10 working days you will be talking to your MP.

Keep copies and make a note of who you have spoken to and when-and the outcome fo the conversation.
Make sure they read back to you any notes on their screen (this makes them very nervous).

Follow through with everything in writing and most of all be persistent

Say you've spoken with a lawyer, and that you cannot be put off forever, because your needs are urgent. They get this kind of thing wrong all the time. I have had endless trouble with the CB and WTC people. In the end, I threatened to take them to court, because they were doing what they do to you - endless droning of their safe mantra "under review", and doing nothing at all. Even if you are not really thinking of going to court, tell them it is your next stop. That's how I got them to behave. I'm a lawyer, BTW.

thank you botj for spelling it all out for me. I will try calling them right away
I will use those exact phrases
three years? gosh :-(

no chance to get an answer over the phone
in the meantime the mp secretary tells me Mister Mp has posted a letter (no idea what letter says though) Hopefully I shal look into it, rather than sorry I am off on holiday

nearly fainted this morning
got a letter on House Of Common letterhead
someone is going to make enquiries and finger crossed a solution
this means so much to me

Did you need a visa to get baby into the UK? Surely that would be proof of entry into the country.

unfortunately no, and there is no stamps on passport since we are european
I lived 18 years here so I did not even think about having something to prove

they couldn't trace my pfb for nearly a year due to them putting a hyphen in my son's middle names instead of 2 seperate names e.g. joe john-jones bloggs instead of joe john james bloggs.