Pension Credit and Self Employment

poundcoin

Due to the recession I was forced to close my lock up rented retail store in March this year ( 5 months to the day ) . Tried unsuccesfully to gain employment and have been living on dwindling savings since March .

Being over 60 I applied for Pension Credit by phone a couple of weeks ago and as it was more than 3 months since I ceased trading I wasn't asked for my last years trading account (year ending March 31st 2011) .
The advisor went through my savings etc. and advised I would be entitled to £150 per week and that it could be backdated 3 months to end of April .
When the form arrived I corrected and signed it and returned it together with all bank statements etc requested .

Today the same advisor rung and quite aggressively said :
.... "you said you ceased trading in March and yet one of the statements you sent still has a bank account listed as MR. Poundcoin /trading as xxxxxxxx and there are payments into it since March , so you are still trading"

I explained that I had not bought or sold any goods (no cash payments in) since March and any payments into that account were refunds from utility companies due to overpayments whilst trading last year and that I was advised to keep that bank account open should there be any tax refunds due to losses .

He kept saying "well you are still trading , payments have gone in and I will require accounts for the last 3 months" and I tried to explain that all any accounts would show was nothing bought or sold and just 3 refunds from utility companies .

I explained that the main refund (that took months to get from British Gas) had been shown itemised on last years accounts as owing and so he seemed to relent and say I will send you form xxxx? and you will have to send a copy of the accounts ending March 31st back with it .

I also tried to explain that it was impossible to get utility companies / councils to refund any money owed exactly on the final day of trading but he didn't seem to grasp it !

Maybe I made a mistake by not omitting the words "TRADING AS XXXXX" from the bank account earlier but I have a horrible feeling this could turn into a saga .

I have informed HMRC I am no longer self-employed and wonder at what point I am actually not trading ? Any advice on how to handle this would be welcome .

suelees1

Stick to your guns. If you get notification that you're not entitled you must appeal it. It sounds quite straightforward to me. Any decision maker worth his/her salt will accept this once you provide a full explanation and the evidence that you haven't been trading.

poundcoin

suelees1 wrote: »

.... If you get notification that you're not entitled you must appeal it. ....

Thanks , when you say "not entitled" do mean to Pension Credit regular payments or are you referring to the back-dated 3 months part ?

Whiteknight

You already knew about Pension Credit when you applied so you could have saved yourself all this hassle if you had explained to them when you made your application that you had ended self employed work be it more than three months before you wanted to claim from.

Have you gotten rid of the rental premises you were using and have you gotten rid of any business assets?

You might have stopped trading but could be sitting on thousands of pounds worth of stock and equipment.

poundcoin

Whiteknight wrote: »

You already knew about Pension Credit when you applied so you could have saved yourself all this hassle if you had explained to them when you made your application that you had ended self employed work be it more than three months before you wanted to claim from.

Have you gotten rid of the rental premises you were using and have you gotten rid of any business assets?

.

Yes I explained that I had been self -employed during the first telephone interview but as it was more than 3 months since I had stopped trading the interviewer didn't seem interested and didn't request a copy of the accounts .

In fact he repeated the date I had told him I had ceased trading in his follow up phone call . To be honest last years accounts only show a large loss so I am not sure what it will prove .

The lease on the rented premises finished in March and we vacated the premises at that time and have no assets .

suelees1

poundcoin wrote: »

Thanks , when you say "not entitled" do mean to Pension Credit regular payments or are you referring to the back-dated 3 months part ?

I wouldn't worry too much about it though as you sound like you've been entitled throughout (inc the 3 months backdate).

poundcoin

suelees1 wrote: »

I wouldn't worry too much about it though as you sound like you've been entitled throughout (inc the 3 months backdate).

Not too sure about the worry part as I have just had another phone call to say that they are arranging a home visit next week to go through the paperwork !

suelees1

home visits are par for the course for many over 60s for the Pension Service to be able to collate has all the necessary details to correctly process the claim. I'd be more inclined to be pleased this is happening rather than keep ringing them or getting letters requesting you submit more and more info

dodger1

OP do you have a partner?

poundcoin

dodger1 wrote: »

OP do you have a partner?

I presume you mean a partner in marriage rather than a partner in business ?
Yes I do and she has just passed the age of 60 too and was employed part-time by the business (not a partner)....what are going to say ? Claim should have been in her name ?

I shouldn't really be worried , as far as I am concerned I think I have all the necessary details .....its just such a bind and even though its over 5 months since we closed , can't seem to get rid of all this bloomin' paperwork !
It's never-ending and this process , like everything else seems so much more difficult if you are self-employed .

If anyone else is reading this thread in the future and is self-employed and wants to claim anything make sure that you delete anything that has your former trading name on and if possible take any scummy job for 3 months ( if you can get one aged over 60 ! ), ......things would be so much easier !

dodger1

poundcoin wrote: »

I presume you mean a partner in marriage rather than a partner in business ?
Yes I do and she has just passed the age of 60 too and was employed part-time by the business (not a partner)....what are going to say ? Claim should have been in her name ?

I shouldn't really be worried , as far as I am concerned I think I have all the necessary details .....its just such a bind and even though its over 5 months since we closed , can't seem to get rid of all this bloomin' paperwork !
It's never-ending and this process , like everything else seems so much more difficult if you are self-employed .

If anyone else is reading this thread in the future and is self-employed and wants to claim anything make sure that you delete anything that has your former trading name on and if possible take any scummy job for 3 months ( if you can get one aged over 60 ! ), ......things would be so much easier !

Sorry I realised afterwards I should have said partner as in wife. The only reason I mentioned it was because the figure of £150 per week seemed wierd. Probably correct though with wife and some savings.