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Anyone else having problems with CTC?

Possibly not the right board to be posting this on, but our lack of Child Tax Credit is contributing to our debt situation.

Our CTC was stopped almost a year ago now, because we had supposedly been overpaid the previous year. This years renewal pack was sent back as soon as I got it and we were then told that we were overpaid last year too. We are now not entitled to any CTC until April 2007!!!

Am I the only person this has happened to? Any time our cirumstances have changed (birth of second child, second child starting nursery, my redundancy, my new job, my unemployment status) I have telephoned them and told them. They've never paid us more than the bog standard minimum anyway, plus you supposedly get more while a child is below 12 months, so how the hell can we have been overpaid?

I had an appeal pack in mid-May, which I sent back, but when I called them yesterday there was no record of them ever getting it (big surprise!), so I asked for another one (which I intend to send back recorded delivery) and today a letter arrived about our Renewal pack (sent back months ago) saying I'd left details out?!?!

Get the impression they have no idea what they're doing and the latest Govt report seems to confim this. Seems they have overpaid people by 'millions'. How is this supposed to help needy families (and children) if they stop it at the drop of a hat because of their mistakes?

Rant over - any feedback/advice would be great.

Katie

Comments

  • Every single year since the system changed they have apparently overpaid me too, like yourself I have informed them of every single change, so cannot understand how they keep getting it so badly wrong!!

    I have appealed once over an obvious error on their part, and it did get sorted, but every single year they take money from me weekly to pay back my overpayment, then the following year they pay it back saying it was their fault and I was entitled to the money (which I tell them every single time they say they have overpaid me!), and I get an apology letter with a nice surprise waiting in my bank account!!!

    I am hoping this will happen again next year, if it doesn't I'll be gutted it will be the first year I haven't ended up with a £500+ lump payment!!!

    I actually phoned them today asking how much longer they are reducing my payment for this year, to be told that they are taking it at a rate of £6.86 per week, and I will still be paying it until 13 weeks into next years, what I don't understand is I should be getting £105 (WTC&CTC) per week, yet am receiving £95, so how is that £6.86 less??? When I did maths at school I made that £10.......bizarre!!! At the end of each year I now add up what they have paid me, and double/triple/quadruple check all my paperwork!!

    I think the new system is horrifically bad, I never had ANY problems with the old style Family Credit.

    Keep on at them, you might end up with a chunky payment back!!

    xxx
    I believe that I have the strength to make my dreams come true
    :T September Challenge £5 per day - £0/£150 :T
  • Katie73
    Katie73 Posts: 38 Forumite
    Thanks for replying and reassuring me that a) I'm not the only they're messing about with and b) it can be sorted (even if it does take them ages).

    Apparently they overpaid us so much that we're entitled to nothing each week - so we must have been overpaid by exactly a year's worth of CTC, which seems ridiculous to me!

    Will call them again tomorrow to chase up my Appeal pack and ask them what the purpose of their latest letter is.

    Fingers crossed for the future!
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