Housing benefit advice

pmf63

Sorry guys another question, this is what happens when you go on a quest to get your affairs sorted out!

Housing benefit. After several months of arguing we have eventually convinced the housing benefit people that we DID inform them that my wife finished work on Sept 9th 2010. (We believe that they listened to a recorded telephone call but cannot be certain.) They have been saying that we hadn't told them and as a result our benefits was seriously reduced from Sept 9th. After all this time they have eventually informed us that they were going to send a cheque for £805 for the underpayment and re-instated the benefit.

Well last week, £453 arrived at our housing office, short by £352. So, we called them. What is going on we ask. They tell us that they have taken back the £352 because of an over payment between June 13th and Sept 9th 2010. By pure coincidence this happens to be the period that my wife worked.

I am expecting them to say that they are not going to give us it back because we didnt inform them that my wife was working. (They had intimated on the telephone this to be the reason but not confirmed it) I have hunted out the letter they sent to us on 29th Sept, just after my wife informed them that she had stopped working, asking us to confirm the dates she worked. They even name her employer!

This letter with my wifes handwritting on giving the start and finish dates, attached to her payslips covering this period has been stamped by their office 'RECEIVED 08 OCT 2010'.

Now if they insist that they are not going to return the £453 can we use this letter as proof that we told them and insist that we did our part therefore they are wrong to recover money that has been payed due to their error?

Hopefully someone can help me sort this out £453 will come in handy at the moment.

Just_Plain_Jane

You might get better advice by posting on the Benefits Board

pmf63

Thanks Jane ... i did look but my eye's weren't working :embarasse