[Help] Council Tax + Housing Benefit

Housing_Benefit_Officer

Jordxn wrote: »

I purchase my monthly travel pass from the bus driver for £105 and he gives me a laminated ticket - I only keep hold of them for a month and then throw them away.

Do you use this ticket when your visit your Mum?

Do you pay cash for the ticket or use a cash card?

princessdon

Jordxn wrote: »

I'm not at university, it's my sister who is at university. I'm working. I've ordered stuff from Amazon/eBay and it has been sent to the address where I'm staying, but I've kept all of my important stuff registered at the Mum's address...stuff like bank/phone bills etc..

I know, I'm just trying to think of things they have at their uni address, as its similar.

How much stuff have you ordered that shows delivery to your friends address? Is there much evidence. Where is your moby registered address? Which address is on your payslips and p60?

Jordxn

Housing_Benefit_Officer wrote: »

Do you use this ticket when your visit your Mum?

Do you pay cash for the ticket or use a cash card?

It's cash that I give to the driver and I just get the laminated ticket. I don't get a receipt obviously, so I guess the tickets that I threw away are the only proof.

Housing_Benefit_Officer

Jordxn wrote: »

No, that's a travel pass to go around the whole of the county, so to return home when I need to, to go to different towns and see my friends...to travel within the same town where I currently work and live. It's for all of that...it's cheaper than paying for seperate tickets and it's cheaper than running a car.

I was hoping your travel arrangements would show you only travelled from your friends to work and could be used as evidence of not living at your Mother's but the type of ticket you purchase could show you travel from your Mothers to work

Housing_Benefit_Officer

What address does your employer hold for you?

thorsoak

I think that the best thing you could do for your mum, Jordan, is to make an appointment with the local CAB for her to see a benefits advisor - and make sure that you go with her.

From what you have written, you are going to have a great deal of difficulty in proving that you left home when you say you did - I do hope that you have changed your address for banking, bills etc now - and also that you have ensured that you are on the electoral roll - which will be instrumental when you eventually want to get credit.

Also, go with your mum to the council offices, with all her paperwork - bank statements, utility bills etc, together with the details of your sister's uni course etc. if, as it would seem, your mum does have to pay what they say, they can come to an agreement about repaying the underpayments over a period of time.

I know you are angry about it - but rules are there for a reason - too often people "forget" that circumstances have changed - and I'm not suggesting that your mum has done so deliberately - but one does hear about people who have won the lottery etc and still forget to tell the authorities that they no longer need benefits.

Jordxn

Housing_Benefit_Officer wrote: »

What address does your employer hold for you?

They hold my mother's address. I really didn't want to change everything over when I started employment and moved as I didn't know how long-term it would be. If I ever moved back home, it would just mean I have to change everything back...so I didn't really want to change my address until I move into my own property.

Jordxn

thorsoak wrote: »

I think that the best thing you could do for your mum, Jordan, is to make an appointment with the local CAB for her to see a benefits advisor - and make sure that you go with her.

From what you have written, you are going to have a great deal of difficulty in proving that you left home when you say you did - I do hope that you have changed your address for banking, bills etc now - and also that you have ensured that you are on the electoral roll - which will be instrumental when you eventually want to get credit.

Also, go with your mum to the council offices, with all her paperwork - bank statements, utility bills etc, together with the details of your sister's uni course etc. if, as it would seem, your mum does have to pay what they say, they can come to an agreement about repaying the underpayments over a period of time.

I know you are angry about it - but rules are there for a reason - too often people "forget" that circumstances have changed - and I'm not suggesting that your mum has done so deliberately - but one does hear about people who have won the lottery etc and still forget to tell the authorities that they no longer need benefits.

Yeah, I think I'm going to have to do this - you and many other people have suggested the exact same thing. I don't have a problem with paying it, If it's what we owe to them, but I just wanted to make sure it was right and fair. I can't afford to pay this amount all at once of course, but I'll need to make arrangements with them to pay it back. I will go to CAB with my mother and we'll put the cards on the table and sort everything out...the longer it's left, the worse it will get. I will also need to speak with my Mum's doctor with regards to her health as I don't feel she should be forced to work...she has tried her hardest and even after 19 years, she still doesn't have a job. She is forever calling employers and going to interviews, but all I ever hear from her is "I didn't get the job this time" - it makes me sad that my mother has to live like this, it makes me sad that she is just another person who doesn't feel like she can live freely. It's sad that she trys with no success.

I don't think they will settle for the little proof I have, although I've been told that I can be considered a lodger if I'm paying the person less than £4000 a year for rent, and it shouldn't affect any of there benefits or discounts...but my friend and his girlfriend have a joint mortgage I believe and I don't think they receive any council tax reductions anyway. I've been told that I can get him to fill out a rent book for all the weeks as that could help the situation (hopefully)

princessdon

Jordxn wrote: »

Yeah, I think I'm going to have to do this - you and many other people have suggested the exact same thing. I don't have a problem with paying it, If it's what we owe to them, but I just wanted to make sure it was right and fair. I can't afford to pay this amount all at once of course, but I'll need to make arrangements with them to pay it back. I will go to CAB with my mother and we'll put the cards on the table and sort everything out...the longer it's left, the worse it will get. I will also need to speak with my Mum's doctor with regards to her health as I don't feel she should be forced to work...she has tried her hardest and even after 19 years, she still doesn't have a job. She is forever calling employers and going to interviews, but all I ever hear from her is "I didn't get the job this time" - it makes me sad that my mother has to live like this, it makes me sad that she is just another person who doesn't feel like she can live freely. It's sad that she trys with no success.

I don't think they will settle for the little proof I have, although I've been told that I can be considered a lodger if I'm paying the person less than £4000 a year for rent, and it shouldn't affect any of there benefits or discounts...but my friend and his girlfriend have a joint mortgage I believe and I don't think they receive any council tax reductions anyway. I've been told that I can get him to fill out a rent book for all the weeks as that could help the situation (hopefully)

Objectively a friend saying you paid - unless his bank account shows money deposited versus the wealth of paper evidence you live at your mothers is a long shot, to say the least.

Jordxn

princessdon wrote: »

Objectively a friend saying you paid - unless his bank account shows money deposited versus the wealth of paper evidence you live at your mothers is a long shot, to say the least.

Yeah, I'm sort of stuck in the middle with this, because I don't know whether I should claim I didn't live there with the little proof I have, or just accept what they say and pay it - but it feels wrong for me to just accept it when I wasn't living there, but at the same time, it's my fault because I didn't make any address changes and I didn't follow the correct procedures. I just want to follow the route that will be easiest for my Mum and I guess the best option would be to just pay the bill and be done with it. I might just move home to keep things under control and support my Mum even more...it just seems easier that way.