How have Tax Credits been for you?

chugalug

The principal is okay but I do think fundamental mistakes have been made that were avoidable. Why did the Govt insist on using the same organisation for its computer system as developed the csa system? Surely they were aware there were problems? Why did they have to make the calculations so complicated? It didnt work with the csa as people see this as fundamentally unfair, same with tax credits. Surely it could have been made simpler - after all we all understood the old WFTC system and the workings out were there so that the claimant or an adviser could check entitlement. I also question whether or not there was a reason for taking tax credits out of the system of welfare benefits with their long history of appealable rights and caselaw and putting it into a punitive system such as the Inland Revenue. Apart from anything else, the staff at the IR are not geared up for claimants and their sometimes chaotic claims - they are more used to demanding money with menaces!!

Fran

Please take time to look at the links provided by Martin and Kevin.

fairenoughclough

Just when I thought it was all going to get sorted out.

On Wednesday last week a very nice lady from the tax credit contact centre rang me up, she went through all the problems I have had and assured me someone would ring me back within 24 hours.

The next day the same lady rang me back and told me that someone from the tax credit office would ring me back within 24 hours.

It is now Wednesday again, no call received.

I'd like to say I'm surprised, but I'm so used to being disappointed by them.

What's it going to be like after Tony Blair's redundancies in the civil service ?

Fran

Looks like it's the last day to give your comments to the eConsultation - see Kevin's Post

Fran

chugalug wrote:

Apart from anything else, the staff at the IR are not geared up for claimants and their sometimes chaotic claims - they are more used to demanding money with menaces!!

There's going to be an ongoing problem with the penalties that they can impose, which is especially bad for people who inadvertantly make a mistake on their forms.

karenj

Like others, I think they should have left well alone and continued the 'additional persons allowance' through the tax code system. How much has it cost the IR (the taxpayer basically) to employ extra people to deal with tax credits and how much postage have they spent in sending out notifications of awards??? I myself, received 7 notifications in the space of 3 weeks in 2003 and they still got it wrong!! I am sure that I was much better off when they used the old system through the tax code. How can they justify the same award to people who earn £50,000 than those who earn £30,000 or less???? And to top it all, you have to phone an 0845 number to query!!!

Fran

With my different "awards" I got that thick green booklet 3 times which tells you about the tax credits - they were the same each time, what a waste of money!

karenj

Need we say more???

jellyhead

you only got 3 fran, well done, i got 27 award notices last year, my husband got 27 the same as mine, all including that booklet. never mind the postage, they must have sent us an entire tree! and we only get the tenner a week child tax, nothing else, how hard can it be get that right ... if they can't manage our claim what chance do the people with more complicated claims have :-(

fairenoughclough

jellyhead wrote:

you only got 3 fran, well done, i got 27 award notices last year, my husband got 27 the same as mine, all including that booklet. never mind the postage, they must have sent us an entire tree! and we only get the tenner a week child tax, nothing else, how hard can it be get that right ... if they can't manage our claim what chance do the people with more complicated claims have :-(

I thought we had it bad, only 20 award notices each, but then they did accuse my wife of bigamy by saying she was already part of another claim !



Ditto on the tenner a week.