First tax credit enquiry letter now Jobcentre compliance home visit

kaylawendy

Dear All

Please can someone help me

I had a week ago a letter to say my Tax credit award for 2006/2007 was having an enquiry

Today I have a letter to Notify me of a home visit by a customer compliance officer from jobcentre plus

It asks for proof of identification such as : passport, driving licence, utility bills, rent agreements, Bank statement etc bearing your name and address

Do I need to provide all of the above?

I have severe mental health problems and this has caused me to become paranoid and to start my self harm again, I cant cope - I am sure I have done nothing wrong. I have always been honest and am not a cheat

Can they arrest me? This is driving me crazy. I cant eat or sleep with worry and my panic attacks are out of control I am so scared.

Any help please?

Thank you

System

Enquiries are normal for both JSA and Tax credits and all you have to do is provide the information they ask for. They are raised for various reasons such as discrepancies in a claim, a tip off from someone else or (and most likely) you are just one of the unlucky ones they have chosen to fulfil their quality checks

They are not going to arrest you. In light of your health problems I would suggest you get help and support from the Citizens Advice Bureau. They may be able to be there when the compliance officer visits you.

Please please don't harm yourself. You can post any questions here on this board and as I said above the CAB can provide help. Don't try to deal with this on your own.

kaylawendy

Thank you

Do I have to have all of the info or just a selection? I can not find my driving licence :mad:

I have a CAB appointment next week but it is playing on my mine so much, the more I google this the more I get filled with dread

I know that due to my illness I am un-rational but with the state of mind I have I cant handle issues well such as this.

System

Asking for a driving license and passport means they are looking for proof of identity. A passport and birth certificate may be enough.

The utility bills, bank statements etc are proof of address. Also in a single person claim they would expect the bills to be in one name only. Bank statements show how much is being spent compared with how much benefit is being received. If there is more money coming in that can't be accounted for then that can be an indicator that a claimant is working/cheating.

Try to get as much together as possible for the visit. If they insist on further information they will give you time to get it.

stef240377

Whilst i were a single parent i frequently had compliance meetings these were mainly to do with my ex partner attempting to wind me up as he were telling the social i had every Tom, !!!!!! and Harry i spoke to move in with me. In the end i told the social if it happened again i would see about sueing them for harassment as each and everytime i had a visit i complied with all of their criteria. All that happens in a visit is they get a note pad out, ask you silly questions like who does your housework, decorating, cooking, gardening etc and you reply with whatever is appropriate to your situation. Whilst they fill out their form they continue to look down their noses at you making you feel like a chastised two year old and eventually they say they have no further questions and will be in touch in the near future they will not tell you how you faired in their military style of questioning just to wait for a reply letter in the post which can take between two and eight weeks.

From my experiences it really isnt nothing to worry about you will probably find some office jobs worth has incorrectly filled out your forms and todays technology will no doubt take the blame for it as it cant argue back 'hey it weren't me'.

Hope this helps.

kaylawendy

Thank you all for replies,

I have rang the tax credits helpine who will not say what the problem is

It is very worrying

katie1

If your worried cant you have someone with you when they come ?
I had i visit once nothing to worry about just ask a number of question and check your id and paper work etc....then they go .

kaylawendy

Thank you

I hate been in the benefit system. I worked for 17/18 years before I became sick and hope I can get well and get out of this stress.

I get paranoid very easily and am convinced this is going to turn out awful. I have checked everything over and over and dont know what I can have done wrong,

I wish they had just turned up inside of giving me time to dwell. I dont know how I will cope until 11 Aug. My mental state is very fragile and is declining again

Chazpots

Hi Kaylawendy - Try not to worry. If you have been honest with them then you have nothing to worry about. Do you have someone who can be there to support you? They certainly won't arrest you.
Please try not to get upset about this. If it is causing you this much worry, perhaps you should see your GP? They may even be able to help by writing to JSA explaining your distress and perhaps they can conduct their enquiries another way? Not sure if it's possible but it's a worth a try.

Keep in touch,
Chaz

kaylawendy

Thank you

The tax credits helpline did say the visit was related to them so I think it is more than a routine check.

Makes it difficult when a letter is received on a saturday as have the weekend to worry before I can make any calls

This has been the longest weekend of my life. I am going to ask for my mother to be with me at the interview

Chazpots

Those letters always arrive at the weekend eh? Glad you've got your mother there with you. Please please try not to make yourself ill over this. x