Totally confused by UC

[DFAMA]

I've recently started claiming UC - newly single parent working full time. All set up and first payment received with no issues after a panic about not being able to get through on the phone to make an appointment. Now I'm due my second payment they have not deducted my wages so this payment is double what it should be. I left a message in my journal to tell them and they have replied saying that my employer has not reported this month's wages to hmrc I have messaged offering to send them a copy of my payslip but they haven't replied and the payment amount is the same. I can't see a way to attach a document or screenshot on my journal and I really don't want to be overpaid. I have also had a new notification about having accepted my commitments to update them of changes within a month - I think that relates to me telling them I had received a pay rise. I didn't tell them at the time as I thought they got the information direct from hmrc. I have put it on there as a change of circumstances now but I don't know if that was the right thing to do as my hours and employer etc are the same, we just get a small payrise each April. They are also asking for mine and my exes earnings each month for the last year - I have my p45 from my old job and all payslips from July onwards but I won't be able to get all the payslips from my previous employer and I don't know what my ex earns or if he will be able to find out his exact income for each month they are asking for. This is long and rambly but I'm panicking about being sanctioned or cut off completely. Any ideas anyone?

If you have had earnings reported in your assessment period then you should have deductions - it is only earnings reported by your employer between those dates. Your assessment period will run from the day you made the initial claim online to one month later then payment date is seven days later.
The reason they are asking for yours and your ex's earnings is to see if you qualify for the grace period for being exempt from the benefit cap, so it's in your best interest to supply that information if you can, although of course it may be that your total UC payment may be no-where near the cap threshold. Not supplying information when they ask or missing things on your ' to do' list on your journal mat result in your claim being stopped or held up so always check a couple of times a week.

So if for example this months wages were paid after the end of your assessment period they will not count but will count for the next assessment period instead.

Thanks babyroobs, I understand that and I am trying to get the information but I don't think I will be able to get everything they are asking for. I am not with my ex any more so it confused me as to why they are asking for his earnings and he is downright obstructive at the best of times so he may well tell me to fuck right off if I start asking him for information.

I used to do a lot of overtime in my previous job so my income was not the same each month, I was thinking about getting the information from my p45 and dividing that by the number 4 to give an average monthly wage for the 4 months of the last tax year I was in that job, will that be ok do you think? I am not intending to deceive anyone but if I can't get the exact figures for each individual month that will be the next best thing.

Re the payment dates, its definitely not that. I get paid on the same date every month and its about halfway through my assessment period. I work for a big company with a seperate payroll department so I would be surprised if they had failed to report to hmrc

Ok so regarding the reporting of wages, I think you need to speak to your employer and see exactly what has been reported to HMRC. You can also log into a government site to see what earnings have been reported and when.
As for reporting the previous earnings, you will just have to do your best at estimating and if you can't get accurate figures from your ex then just leave it blank and put a note on your journal explaining why. I 'm sure they can check these figures themselves if they need to, it's ridiculous.

I get the childcare element of UC and last month we received a lot more UC than expected, especially as not currently paying for nursery. I rang the help line and was told that HMRC didn't give my wage info in time so it appears I didn't get paid. So this month it will look like I have been paid twice. Once the payment is in the system they can't change it so who knows what is going to happen this month. I would like to point out that this also happened to a colleague of mine last month too. Appears there has been an issue with UC recieving information from HMRC.

Also, you shouldn't need to inform them of any wage increase/decrease as they get their information directly from HMRC. My wage has fluctuated with days off/illness and it's always been correct on my statement.

Sorry I'm not sure about why they are asking for last year's wages as it's not something I have come across.

Thanks both of you for the information, I'm relieved to see that I'm not the only one. So it looks like there is nothing I can do to stop this massive payment coming in tomorrow now but I will probably not receive anything next month, thats annoying but at least I know so I can put aside the extra money and use it for next months bills etc. If you don't get any UC one month do you then need to reapply or do they update automatically? I have put my pay rise in as a change of circumstances now so I hope that won't complicate the issue further. It is such a complicated system, it must be a real struggle for people who have issues with budgeting or no wifi etc

You don't need to reapply, I believe that if you are not entitled to anything for 6 months they close the claim. However, when I called about the overpayment I did ask what was going to happen in current situation. (We only get the childcare element of UC and as not currently paying for nursery we will not be getting anything from UC). I was told that claims will not be closed atm and every claim will be looked at individually prior to closure due to so many people in unusual circumstances eg no childcare payments, lower wages. Hope this helps

When I called I got connected to someone in under 5 minutes so if you need any help it might be quicker to call than wait for a reply on the journal.

Hi @DFAMA I'm a work coach, as said previously, if your employer didn't report your earnings to HMRC in time, your UC payment will be higher. It will most likely be lower next month so please keep some aside.

When you report new earnings it's just so we can see that your earning potential has increased so that we can step back a bit if that makes sense.

In regards to your ex,. If you're no longer living together you need to report it as a change of circumstances on your UC account.

That is really helpful to know, thank you.

Charlieandthechocolatecake I only started claiming as my ex moved out so thats why I was confused about the questions about his income! They are asking for our income for each month for the full year before we split and I put my claim in. Its not a change in circumstances as its a single person claim. I work full time for a fairly average wage so I don't have any requirements on there for looking for work or increasing my hours

@DFAMA are you sure your ex isn't in your claim? They would never ask for the income history of somebody that doesn't live with you. Also, is your ex on your tenancy agreement?

@charlieandthechocolatecake I am 100% sure hes not on the claim, as I said before I did not claim anything when we were together and only started the claim when he left as I became a single parent. I checked really carefully and it is 100% a single person claim. He is not on the tenancy, that has always been in my name only even when he was living here - he was permitted to live here but not named iyswim.

The question is a link posted in my journal saying confirm your past 12 months earnings, I clicked on there and the first question is were you living with a partner for the 12 months before your claim started - the answer to that is yes and then the next question is about each of our earnings for the last 12 months.

They are asking about your partners earnings because of the benefit cap.

Toothfairy - he's not my partner he's my ex hence the single parent UC claim and the income is for the last year not current

When the benefit cap affects your Universal Credit payments
The benefit cap might not affect your Universal Credit payments for up to 9 months. This is called the ‘grace period’.
You’ll get the grace period if all of the following are true:
• you’re claiming Universal Credit because you stopped working or your earnings went down
• you’re now earning less than £604 a month
• in each of the 12 months before your earnings went down or you stopped working, you earned the same as or more than the earnings threshold (this was £569 up to 31 March 2020 and is £604 from 1 April 2020)
Your partner’s earnings will be included when working out how much you earned even if they’re not claiming benefits. If you have separated from your partner, their earnings will be included for the time that you lived with them before you separated.
You need to report your last 12 months’ earnings when you apply for Universal Creditt_ to get the grace period.

• he's not my partner he's my ex hence the single parent UC claim and the income is for the last year not current

Yes I meant ex partner. It’s the previous earnings that count for the grace period.

@DFAMA so if your ex partners earnings combined with yours were high enough you would not be affected by the benefit cap if for example you lost your job next month.

Thats helpful Carben, thank you! I've done it now and my earnings alone are way above that threshold. I think I've worked it out - apparently there were no earnings reported to hmrc for my last assessment period so it looks to them like I am now unemployed, normally what I would get from UC would be way below the benefit cap because its just a bit of a top up of my salary but they paid me a lot more this month because of my apparent lack of earnings which could make me subject to the benefit cap. My brain is fried trying to work this stuff out!