JSA stopped - need advice please.

Pretty_Thing

Asking on behalf of my son.
He is 24 and lost his job about 3 months ago (fired for gross misconduct - which he denies). Signed on for the first time in his life and received JSA after a waiting period. About 2 weeks ago his JSA was stopped with no notification. When he rang up they said it was because he was sacked from his job and it would be withheld for up to 6 months. He has yet to receive written notification even though he has asked several times. He has had hardship payment turned down because his gf is working and he lives with her. He has appealed about his JSA and is waiting for a decision.
He has no money, has a loan, has bills and needs to eat and on top of that him and his gf have a baby due in August, so she is about to start maternity leave.
I am currently paying his loan and giving him money to cover his missing JSA but can't keep this up for long. He is desperately seeking work but so far without success.
My son is starting to crack under the pressure and I fear on the verge of depression. I have told him to visit the doctor, - whether he will or not I don't know. (This is genuine btw)
Question. If he was deemed unfit for work, would he receive any sickness benefit of any sort? - bearing in mind that his JSA was stopped. The whole system conspires against the 'honest' person and we don't know which way to turn for the best.
Any advice gratefully received.

Witter

Tell him to apply for a crisis loan if hes suffering hardship till he gets a dicision on his jsa. I dont know about sick benefits so couldnt tell you if or what he could claim

dmg24

Did he not appeal his dismissal?

Pretty_Thing

dmg24 wrote: »

Did he not appeal his dismissal?

No. There were reasons for this which will take too long to go in to. Just need an answer about the sickness question.

thanks

dmg24

Had he appealed his dismissal, it would be much more likely that the JCP would have believed his side of the story.

The issue is that GPs now have to issue a fit note, not a sick note. From what you have said, your son is fit for work. His sickness is caused by having limited funds, and that is only going to get worse if he does not have a job.

If he is found to be unfit for work (and I would be amazed if he got through the ESA medical), his entitlement to CB ESA would be dependent upon his NI Conts over the past few years.

oldmotherreilly

The Jobcentre should be able to tell your son why his JSA has stopped-if it is because of a sanction due to misconduct they will be able to tell him exactly what dates the sanction will apply. Other than this, dmg has given you all the relevant advice regarding ESA.