Grrr I hate the government (sorry for those who work for them)

[NewboldNewMum]

Well I don't get it, I can't get any money from Job Centre, DWP have stopped our working tax credits for me, so that leaves us living on £40 a week after all the bills have been taken out of my OH wages.

I just don't get it, I didn't sign on for about 2 years and didn't work either, so when we got the flat I went to sign on, only to be told that because my OH was living with me, I couldn't get nothing, the only thing I was entitled to was the national insurance stamp. So I carried on signing on, because we had applied for working tax credits. We've been fine until this week, my OH gets a letter from DWP saying that our working tax credits have basically stopped, so he rang them up and asked why.

They said that they had looked into what I was getting from the Job Centre and found out that it wasn't Income related benefit that I was getting, but Contribution based and they don't pay out for that benefit. I'm so mad, the Job Centre told me it Income Based when I applied for benefit last year and it's taken the DWP nearly a year to find that it wasn't out. Luckily we don't have to pay anything back to DWP, but I'm at a loss now.

I don't see the point in carrying on signing on for my national insurance stamp, because I won't even get that sure start grant, due to me being on contribution based benefit. The job centre said that whilst my OH is working I won't be entitled to any money either.

With a baby on the way and full rent and council tax and bills to pay, I can't see how we are going to manage to be honest. I know once the baby is here, we can apply for child benefit and child tax credits, but in the meantime how am I supposed to get the things we need for the baby without no money.

Anyone got any advice?

 

[Katy_89]

No advice, just that I'm in the same situation and unfortunately that's just how it works.

Although, I don't get why it's affected your tax credits. They are based on household income, not benefit entitlement.

I'd recommend you do keep signing on for your stamp because if you don't you'll have a massive gap in your records when it comes to pension time and you might lose out on any state pension if there's a huge gap xx

 

[megsmeadow]

Most social work departments (in Scotland, I assume England too) have a welfare rights team attached to them. They can go through your finances and use their income maximisation approach to make sure you are getting everything you are entitled to, it's surprising what can be available but not widely advertised!! Also the citizens advice bureau should be able to help to advise. Personally I have no idea but certainly worth asking around the agencies!! Good luck!!

 

[NewboldNewMum]

I rang the local CAB office yesterday and they told me to come in and see them, but they think that there is something wrong with the whole situation, so hopefully I can get it sorted out, but if they can't help then, I'll be writing letters to the Job centre and to the Tax office and if I still get no joy from either place, I guess the next step will be to go the ombudsman for the tax office and Job centre.

I've calmed down a bit, but not helping with the stress levels to be honest...

 

[megsmeadow]

Oh no, the last thing you need is extra stress!!!! Hope you get some joy with the CAB!

 

[NewboldNewMum]

Sorry I wasn't in any mood yesterday to let you know what happened at the CAB office. Well CAB rang the tax office and it turns out that somewhere along line, someone has screwed up royally, because they should have never paid us any or most of the 3 grand they have paid us. I've got to go back into the CAB office next week because they can't understand any of it and said they are going to investigate.

But the upshot of it is, we might end up having to pay back the 3 grand. All I can say is that we filled the forms in correctly to the best of our knowledge and that the tax office obviously didn't check the information before they paid out.

The other thing is that apparently the less money I get, the less I will get from the tax office, which makes me believe that something needs to be sorted for that.

I also recently got a new tax code, which turns out to be the tax code for Basic Rate, I don't earn any money, so the woman I spoke to at the Job Centre can't understand why I am on that tax code.

Anyway, I'll update you all on my next visit to the CAB office, not looking forward to that.

 

[yummymum]

Once the baby is here u will get the surestart grant u need to apply before baby is 12 wks old