ESA Giro not received - what happens now?

oldestrocker

Hi, I was told last Thursday and again on Friday that my Giro which I should have had last Wednesday has been sent.

It has still not arrived in today's post.
I have checked with the local sorting office for the Post Office and they state that there is no outstanding post to be delivered.

I am really short of money now and don't know what to do on Monday.
Do I tell them that it is lost? If so, could I collect a duplicate from the local JC+?
Or would they put a stop on it and send out a duplicate?

Either way, I have had no money since the 18th November, have bills to pay and need to buy some small presents for my grandchildren.
Can I claim an emergency payment somewhere?


Thanks

Loopy_Girl

You can get them to cancel it and then go to the issuing JCP and ask for a counter payment.

You may be sitting all day waiting for it but at least you will get money that day.

Not sure where you are and if you have adverse weather but if you do, you will need to take this into consideration. I have only had 1 mail drop since Monday.

Why are you getting a giro anyway? You should have got your payments direct into your bank account and if you don't have one, you can get a Post Office account.

oldestrocker

Loopy_Girl wrote: »

You can get them to cancel it and then go to the issuing JCP and ask for a counter payment.

You may be sitting all day waiting for it but at least you will get money that day.

Not sure where you are and if you have adverse weather but if you do, you will need to take this into consideration. I have only had 1 mail drop since Monday.

Why are you getting a giro anyway? You should have got your payments direct into your bank account and if you don't have one, you can get a Post Office account.

Thanks for that.
It isn't issued by a JC+ it's an ESA payment that comes from a BDC. They don't have a counter and there is no public right of access.
Yes the weather is terrible, but all of the snow has now gone. I though about that myself that is why I telephoned the Post Office to see if it was held up there.

If it doesn't turn up on Monday I will then go down to the local JC+ and wait it out. I can't afford to wait weeks until they are sure that it hasn't been cashed. Been down that road years ago!

I've always had giros. Before that I used to have the benefit books that you took to the Post Office.
I don't have a bank account, never had need of one. I know where my money is when I am holding it!
The only time I have had cheques, I arrange to pay them into my daughters' account and she gives me the money. I also have other little bits that come in that are paid direct into her account.

To be honest I don't like those plastic cards that you use in shops, Anybody can get hold of them. There have been too many stories about people being ripped off at those hole in the wall machines with people copying your details.

The DWP have never had a problem in paying it this way in the past as they wouldn't agree to paying my money into my daughters' account.

Loopy_Girl

You can get a Post Office account.

You can only get your benefits paid in to it and use the card to take benefits out of it, at the Post Office.

Unless you tell anyone your PIN then you can't be 'ripped off'.

It means your benefit money is safe - no chance of being 'lost in the post' and you are guaranteed it on the same day every week.

I wouldn't dismiss it if I were you as look at the guddle you are in now and the hassle next week. If it was issued on Wednesday then it would have been in your PO account yesterday. You go to PO and withdraw all your money so you would still know where it is.

You say you have been without money since 18th Nov but by having a PO account (which is ONLY for payment and withdrawl of benefit money) this could all have been avoided.

oldestrocker

Loopy_Girl wrote: »

You can get a Post Office account.

You can only get your benefits paid in to it and use the card to take benefits out of it, at the Post Office.

Unless you tell anyone your PIN then you can't be 'ripped off'.

It means your benefit money is safe - no chance of being 'lost in the post' and you are guaranteed it on the same day every week.

I wouldn't dismiss it if I were you as look at the guddle you are in now and the hassle next week. If it was issued on Wednesday then it would have been in your PO account yesterday. You go to PO and withdraw all your money so you would still know where it is.

You say you have been without money since 18th Nov but by having a PO account (which is ONLY for payment and withdrawl of benefit money) this could all have been avoided.

To be honest you do make some sense.
I have never heard of this Post Office Card Account. I know in the past my daughter tried to get my wife and I to open an account with her bank, but they wanted all sorts of papers and identity.
Neither my wife nor I have ever had a passport and I have a driving licence that was issued in about 1974 if I remember rightly - just the green paper thing, not the red licence book - I had to hand that in.
Anyhow, because we didn't have any acceptable - to them - forms of identification and have never appeared on the voting lists, they weren't interested in us.
Why on earth they wanted us to prove who we were when all we were intending doing was to pay in our own money I don't know.
Anyhow up until now things have gone OK. I get my DLA every 4 weeks by giro and my wife gets her OAP every 4 weeks the same.

Do I have to prove who I am when I open one of these Post Office Accounts? Where do I get an application form from?

I_luv_cats

Can you get a nomination form from Jobcentreplus for a PO account?

It would be less worry for you, more certainty of payment and you go to the Post Office anyway to cash your Giro Cheque.

I think you need to ring ESA BDC to get them to fax forms for a counter payment @ your local Jobcentre.

oldestrocker

I_luv_cats wrote: »

Can you get a nomination form from Jobcentreplus for a PO account?

It would be less worry for you, more certainty of payment and you go to the Post Office anyway to cash your Giro Cheque.

I think you need to ring ESA BDC to get them to fax forms for a counter payment @ your local Jobcentre.

Oh right, thanks.

If the giro doesn't turn up on Monday I will do as you suggest and ring the BDC - I have to anyhow about something else (need to make sure that I am still entitled to ESA as I think they have put me back to the assessment rate from the work group) - and ask them to fax the documents to my local JC+. Whilst there I will ask about the 'Nomination' form.

Thanks

I_luv_cats

It is called letter of invitation. The BDC (or perhaps JC) will put you right.

Good luck

Loopy_Girl

I think you get the application pack from the JCP or BDC - ask since you will be there next week anyway.

If it helps, think of it as a weekly plastic giro! It's not like the cards you see people use in the shops I promise you.

Every week you have your plastic giro, you go down to the PO, pop it in the machine and your PIN and ask the person for all your cash out....much easier than faffing with paper giros and as I say, you know your money will always be there on the day and you ar not waiting on the postie.

If you can manage to sign on to a forum and post then getting a using a card will be a doddle!!

oldestrocker

Loopy_Girl wrote: »

I think you get the application pack from the JCP or BDC - ask since you will be there next week anyway.

If it helps, think of it as a weekly plastic giro! It's not like the cards you see people use in the shops I promise you.

Every week you have your plastic giro, you go down to the PO, pop it in the machine and your PIN and ask the person for all your cash out....much easier than faffing with paper giros and as I say, you know your money will always be there on the day and you ar not waiting on the postie.

If you can manage to sign on to a forum and post then getting a using a card will be a doddle!!

Thankyou for being so kind and helpful. I appreciate it very much.

Loopy_Girl

oldestrocker wrote: »

Thankyou for being so kind and helpful. I appreciate it very much.

You are very welcome. Thank you for being so polite to me