Benefit Question

omen666

The question is : Does my sister owe the DWP money or do they owe her?

Circs:

Up until 31st October she was in receipt of the following and are rough amounts per week:

Income Support £65
Tax Credits £130
Child Benefit £20
DLA Higher rate for her son - Care component £75

She was sucessful in an interview for a nusery assistant, the work she used to do before. This job was to start on the 1st November 2010. This was a role for 16 hours per week @ £6 per hour and no more than 16 hours. On the 24th October she notified all agencies about her starting work. She did not receive any back to work grant.

She started the work on the 1st and after her second week she went in on the monday of the 3rd week and then her son went into hospitalwith pneumonia and swine flu and was transferred to a childrens ICU in Leicester. He was literally fighting for his life and only the machines were keeping him alive and she was told to expect the worst as we all were.

Her son has been in and out of hospital and has numerous issues the respiratory being the major one and more threatening and she gets DLA higher rate care as he does need 24 hour care She felt with our support she could return to work part time as he had been progressing well in the 4 months before this job started. With him now in ICU and the forecast bad, she called work on the Tuesday and said I dont think I will be able to return witht he situation at hand and all dependant which way it goes it is unlikely that she would be able to return for some time. As it is he is still in hospital but back to normal just now waiting to see a specialist for his chest, magical work that they do in the ICU's.

So over the period he is in hospital, she calls the DWP et all to let them know the situation and had to give up the role.

She gets a letter on the 12th December saying they have been made aware that she started a new job and therefore her Income Support was closed on the 30th November. She did not read this until the 21st December as she was saying at my parents during this time rather than by herself.

So she called and made a rapid reclaim on the 21st and her claim is now live and in payment for this date.

She has now received a letter stating that as she received payment between 1st November and the 02 December she owes some £280

Her one and only payment she did receive from the nursery was for £217 Gross and £174 Net.

So all all the DWP paid her all through November 30th but nothing between 1st Dec -> 21st Dec

She worked 36 hrs during a 3 week period 1st November -> 19th November

Hope that all makes sense.

On another note..........the above applies in relation to her Housing Benefit. She moved into a new disabled property on the 1st November to provided by the local authority due to her sons disabilities. They too are asking for proof of work and IS but because the DWP have messed the dates up this has made it difficult too.

Is she entitled to HB Award even during the periood of work? He rent is some £90 per week

Thanks as always

DX2

omen666 wrote: »

Up until 31st October she was in receipt of the following and are rough amounts per week:

Income Support £130
Tax Credits £130
Child Benefit £20
DLA Higher rate for her son - Care component £75

I know you are using rough amounts but IS in nowhere near £130 per week, per fornight yes but not weekly.

omen666

DX2 wrote: »

I know you are using rough amounts but IS in nowhere near £130 per week, per fornight yes but not weekly.

Thanks apologies,just spoke to her and that is correct. I have amended it

DX2

I'm still reading and picking bits out.
She would be far better claiming carers allowance and getting a carers premium on IS.

I'm just going to dish the supper out will have a look again in a wee while.

DX2

Okay just to shorten this a little and the facts are clear:

Started work on 1st November 2010
Stopped work on 19th November 2010

Income Support was still in payment up to 30th November 2010 even though she informed them on the 24th October 2010 that she would be starting employment on 1st November 2010.

She put in a rapid reclaim for IS on the 21st December 2010 and IS say she has an over payment of £280.00.

Personally I would dispute the overpayment she informed Income Support on the 24th October 2010 that she would be starting employment on the 1st November 2010 yet they continued to pay her Income Support up to 30th November 2010.

They couldn't pay her Income Support from 1st December 2010 through to 21st December 2010 as they had assumed she was still in employment, it wasn't until the 21st December 2010 that she did a rapid reclaim and would only be eligible for IS from this date.

omen666

Thanks DX she submitted the carers application online last week as I foundout about it on MSE.

Are you saying because they made the mistake in not closing her claim even though she notified them that was it was their error then she shouldn't have to pay this money back? I thought that wasnt applicable, but hey thats why I am posting on here asking.

How does the money she earnt affect her Housing Benefit?

Also she should have been in reciept of IS during December during the 3 weeks they didnt pay her, she thought as she had notified them that she was not working for them anymore that her claim would be amended due to earnings and she sent a copy of wage slips in and as she notified them when her son went into hospital as she had to notify DLA that he was back in for a indeterminate amount of time.

DX2

omen666 wrote: »

Thanks DX she submitted the carers application online last week as I foundout about it on MSE.

Are you saying because they made the mistake in not closing her claim even though she notified them that was it was their error then she shouldn't have to pay this money back? I thought that wasnt applicable, but hey thats why I am posting on here asking.

How does the money she earnt affect her Housing Benefit?

Also she should have been in reciept of IS during December during the 3 weeks they didnt pay her, she thought as she had notified them that she was not working for them anymore that her claim would be amended due to earnings and she sent a copy of wage slips in and as she notified them when her son went into hospital as she had to notify DLA that he was back in for a indeterminate amount of time.

Have a read of this
http://www.cpag.org.uk/press/2010/081210.htm

The Supreme Court has today dismissed an appeal by Department for Work and Pensions and ruled that the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions cannot recover overpayments of social security benefits through the courts where the claimant is not at fault.

I'm not so clued up about HB sorry, hopefully a HB bod will help.

IS don't tend to do things the simple way, you would assume they would amend her IS claim but they don't. You really have to be on the ball I'm not sure if she would be able to appeal that decision due to the circumstances that she was under.

On the carers front she will get £53.90 per week and make sure she claims the carers element via Income support which is another £30 odd per week.