Missed JSA sign on appointment, benefits stopped, what to do?

alanamyles

I'm posting on behalf of my brother, as I'm really anxious about his problem and am concerned he is complacent about the issue as he's living with me at the moment.

My brother was due to sign on on Monday but was feeling rather unwell due to a migrane and insomnia. He called the jobcentre to ask if he could miss the appointment and was told a form would be sent out to explain his absence, and that (all being well) his benefits would not be affected as this was a temporary illness.

If he had signed on, benefits would have been paid on Thursday. No money has been paid, but the form has been sent out.

He's not yet filled the form in, and for some reason is very reluctant to call up/visit the jobcentre to hand the form in personally.

I'm worried his claim could be stopped, that he'll lose the fortnight's benefit and will have to reclaim (more delay). In the meantime he has no money at all and is literally living off me.

What is the best course of action for him to take?

Should he ring/attend the jobcentre today? Would Monday be too late? If he sends the form in the post, what sort of delay should be expect?

Any advice would be very much appreciated, so thank you in advance to anyone who could help.

Mupette

He needs to get himself down to the JC asap. Other wise he will have to start the reclaim again.

nannytone_2

if you continue to 'carry' him, he's never going to take responsibility for himself!

dookar

Get him to take the form in on Monday, this is the absolute latest be can do it

akin_drum

dookar wrote: »

Get him to take the form in on Monday, this is the absolute latest be can do it

Tuesday, Monday is a bank holiday

dookar

Oh yeah, whoops

purple.sarah

When I missed an appointment once due to illness they still paid my claim because I notified them before I was supposed to be there and completed the form.

He should at the very least ring the Job Centre today:

• Jobsearch helpline
  08456 060 234
  Benefits claims
  0800 055 6688
• Opening Hours
  Jobsearch helpline:
  Monday to Friday 8.00 am to 6.00 pm, Saturday 9.00 am to 1.00 pm
  
  Benefits helpline:
  Monday to Friday 8.00 am to 6.00 pm

Then get in first thing Tuesday. It's particularly important he contacts them about this today otherwise nothing can be done for 4 days because of the bank holiday weekend. They've given him a chance by sending out the form. He really needs to tackle this ASAP to avoid having to reclaim. Make it clear that if he makes no effort to sort this you will not lend him money and that should motivate him. I imagine with this attitude he's not doing anything to actually seek work, which is in itself a violation of his job seekers agreement.

alanamyles

Thank you all for your sound advice. My brother seems to be burying his head in the sand about this! After much (argumentative) persuasion, he called the jobcentre who unfortunately weren't particularly helpful. From what I can tell, he was told that he'd lose a day's worth of allowance (because he was unfit for work due to illness on the day he was supposed to sign on) and that the remainder of his allowance would be paid once the filled-in form has been received and processed. Also, he was told that his claim is still "open" and that - as the person he spoke to wasn't sure of the procedure for missed signing - someone would call him back either today or Tuesday next week.

I agree that the ideal scenario would have been to fill in the form and hand it in personally at the jobcentre ASAP (ie: as soon as it came through the letterbox), which is what I would have done personally. He truly believes he should send it through the post and that his claim for JSA will remain open at least until his next signing date, a week on Monday, plus that his allowance will be backdated and paid once they receive the form.

I did search the web for others' experience and insight before posting here, and can't help but wonder if there is a cut-off date for responding to the form/attending the JC, after which he'd need to make a reclaim? I've seen previous mentions of "5 days to contact the JC", but as these were dated in 2010 and earlier, I'm not sure if this would still apply. Can anyone confirm this please?

My biggest worry is that sending the form through the post will result in a delay in him receiving his allowance, or worse - that he'll have left it too late and will have to reclaim (which would undoubtedly result in several weeks of receiving no other income). Unfortunately he thinks I'm nagging, but in the meantime is expecting me to support him when my kids and I are already living on a shoestring income (I'm self-employed, but don't earn very much!).

If anyone can advise about actual timescales/rules to help set him straight about his obligations and responsibilities I'd really appreciate it!

dookar

5 working days

alanamyles

Thanks dookar I've been able to verify this through the DWP website too. This "decision maker's" PDF makes it very clear: http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/dmgch20.pdf

From this, it seems my brother has 5 working days (starting from the day after he was supposed to sign) to attend and provide a valid reason for failing to attend monday's interview. Somewhere in the doc it even says that the form can be posted and accepted so long as it would be received within this time frame. Then it's up to the decision maker as to whether his reason is a valid one for not attending (if not, I'm sure he'll be deservedly sanctioned but at least he won't have to start from scratch with his claim).

He didn't receive a call from the JC, so regardless I think he should attend on Tuesday with his JSA28 form filled in as this will be the 5th working day after his appointment, sending in the post now seems way too risky to me.

Admittedly I'm rather upset that he hasn't stepped up to his responsibilities - he'd made me believe that his allowance would be paid and I'd foolishly allowed him to borrow some money from me which he's now unable to pay back (I'd planned to take the kids on a day trip next week but since he can't pay me back as planned we'll be unable to go). So, apologies for my rants and many thanks to all who have advised

purple.sarah

I agree he should attend on Tuesday with his JSA28 form filled in. Sending it through the post would cause a delay he can't afford at this stage. I hope he gets it sorted so he can pay you back!