had signing day changed, will i lose money?

donnajunkie

when i signed on today i got told my signing day was changing. it will now be on a monday. i sign next on the 10th may. i asked does this mean i will get less than 2 weeks money at any time. they said no i wont lose any money. they said the next time i sign i will get 2 weeks money. i dont see how this can be because it is less than 2 weeks away.
are there any jobcentre workers out there knowledgable about this? will i get less than 2 weeks money the next time i sign or not?
in the letter it says the change is based on my ni number. is it just coincidence that it has happened at the same time that i hit the 12 month mark.

Loobysaver

Yes it is just coincidence, signing days are all linked to your national insurance number

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/MoneyTaxAndBenefits/BenefitsTaxCreditsAndOtherSupport/BeginnersGuideToBenefits/DG_178593

tcr_3

If you signed on today, that means you're signing on for the period 15/04/10 to 28/04/10.

The next time you sign on is 10/05/10. That means you'll be signing on then for the period 29/04/10 to 10/05/10, so that's 5 days from 29/04/10 to 03/05/10 and 7 days for 04/05/10 to 10/05/10, 12 days in total.

So I think the payment you get for signing on 10/05/10 will be 2 days less than you're used to, but payments after that will be back to the usual fortnightly amount.

You can apply for a Crisis Loan if that one off change causes you hardship, I think, unless there's some kind of transitional scheme in place which covers the 2 days shortfall (haven't heard of such a thing ... maybe someone here might know more than I).

donnajunkie

it sounds like a sneaky way to take some money off people.

Killmark

Its not a sneaky way of taking money off people.

Last 2 digits of NI Number will indicate the correct signing day.

00-19 = Monday
20-39 = Tuesday
40-59 = Wednesday
60-79 = Thursday
80-99 = Friday

There are two main possible reasons why your signing day changing.

Either:

A: You were put on the wrong signing day/cycle on your book, but the payment system has the correct day/cycle.

In which case you could be owed some JSA.

B. The book and the payment system had the wrong day/cycle, in which case you would get the pro rata amount.

donnajunkie

Killmark wrote: »

Its not a sneaky way of taking money off people.

Last 2 digits of NI Number will indicate the correct signing day.

00-19 = Monday
20-39 = Tuesday
40-59 = Wednesday
60-79 = Thursday
80-99 = Friday

There are two main possible reasons why your signing day changing.

Either:

A: You were put on the wrong signing day/cycle on your book, but the payment system has the correct day/cycle.

In which case you could be owed some JSA.

B. The book and the payment system had the wrong day/cycle, in which case you would get the pro rata amount.

i have been signing on a wednesday for ages and have always got a full 2 weeks money each fortnight. so they dont owe me any money. if i have to make less than 2 weeks money last for 2 weeks it is effectively a benefit cut for that 2 weeks. technically it isnt a cut because they would still be paying me for everyday.

Killmark

donnajunkie wrote: »

i have been signing on a wednesday for ages and have always got a full 2 weeks money each fortnight. so they dont owe me any money. if i have to make less than 2 weeks money last for 2 weeks it is effectively a benefit cut for that 2 weeks. technically it isnt a cut because they would still be paying me for everyday.

I'll elaborate further with some examples, please remember your benefits are paid in arrears. Please note there are two payment cycles P and R (even and odd numbers respectively that will indicate which week you should be signing on respectively).

If for example you are due to sign on a wednesday but your NINO means you should sign on a tuesday then you are getting paid 1 day late, as the payment system will only update to the previous tuesday.

If however you sign on a wednesday but your NINO means you should sign on a thursday then it will only update to the previous thursday.

If you call the Benefit Delivery Centre they will be able to give you the specific affect it will have to your payments.

JC9297

donnajunkie wrote: »

i have been signing on a wednesday for ages and have always got a full 2 weeks money each fortnight. so they dont owe me any money. if i have to make less than 2 weeks money last for 2 weeks it is effectively a benefit cut for that 2 weeks. technically it isnt a cut because they would still be paying me for everyday.

You're not losing out on any money, the payment that is triggered by yesterday's signing only has to last 12 days so just keep 2 days worth of money to add to your next payment so that you have the same amount of money for that 2 weeks.

tcr_3

donnajunkie wrote: »

i have been signing on a wednesday for ages and have always got a full 2 weeks money each fortnight. so they dont owe me any money. if i have to make less than 2 weeks money last for 2 weeks it is effectively a benefit cut for that 2 weeks. technically it isnt a cut because they would still be paying me for everyday.

You're not losing out a penny over the period of your claim, not one penny.

If you've been signing on "for ages" that means you're being shifted onto the new payday system. That's been put in place for working age benefits to make the transition from one benefit to another easier for you. And it also makes the administrative burden easier because in the long term it will reduce the number of people who need to claim crisis loans.

As to your suggestion that there's some sinister reason for the change, to rob you of benefit, no offence but that's crap, basically.