ESA and IS

epitome

Spicelady wrote: »

" Option 3 did you say that you wanted a single claim for contribution based ESA and your OH would be making a single claim for CA and IS?
I am just wondering whether they thought that your OH would be trying to make a joint claim for IS."

I maybe a bit confused but how can we make both make SINGLE claims when we are a COUPLE as such ? And if so (simply) how would that work as such please ?

pmlindyloo wrote: »

Have been pondering this and I think I may have misread the link about making 2 single claims. This would not make any sense the more I think about it.

The law centre link is not written very well, where it says "provided it is not a joint claim" it is referring to JSA. The only benefit that can have a "joint claim" is JSA, on JSA IB you both claim JSA and you are both jointly responsible for the claim.

You cannot have a joint claim of IS or ESA...for these benefits you have a claim in your own name and your parner is named on your claim. YOU are paid for your partner...your partner has no responsibility for the claim, so it is not called a "joint claim".

The link is saying, "you cannot have ESA C and be jointly claiming JSA IB with your partner."

Spicelady

Hi Epitome
Many thanks for the reply.

To be honest as I said I get nervous when I phone up and also we was so arrogant and just stating the PC says u can not do that. Then he starting talking that it was all gonna change next year to Universal credits etc. I knew I wasn't really going to get far with him. But didn't want to go blundering in as Ive waited this long since August anyway.

Regarding the complaint, yes I know what you mean but at this time I really just want to get back on track to what I should be legally getting and it backdated.

May I ask what BDC is please ?

Thanks about the advice about phoning and asking if the ESA C is all ok. Ive printed out all the info you have given me.

Ive been doing some reading whilst not making phone calls etc. And its all making a bit more sense to me now, as you have explained. And that may come across in the phone call that I know a bit what Im talking about, and more confident

Thanks also for clarifying the joint claim business from the link as well.

Im gonna try phong again on Tuesday morning. As Im not about on Monday ( appointments.
So lets hope second time lucky!

THANKS again for your advice. Much appreciated as always and its lead me to understand the whole scenario, also why they stopped the ESA IR in the first place.

I will check back again when I have more news......

THANKS A LOT !

epitome

BDC Benefit Delivery Centre, they are actually now called BC Benefit Centre

The BC will be at the top of your letter.

I suspect you will get your arrears on Tuesday, so if you find £1,500 in your account on Tuesday there will be no need to phone ESA.

All you need to do then is ask Income Support for arrears.

Spicelady

Hiya Epitome

Thanks for the post as ever

To be honest I doubt they will pay the arrears without a phonecall ....
They don't seem to be very good at communication or answering letters, without a prompt.

They haven't sent a letter after the " close partners IS and claim ESA IR " and the " not paying you IR ESA anymore"

What I may do is go and check my Post office card before I start any phone calls. Its been on Zero since August, except for my DLA money,coming in regularly.

I do think they could have just written to me in August with the same letters they have just sent.
Then it wouldn't have got to this point

Again a big thank you to you, Epitome! Its been extremely informative and helpful. Also very reassuring to hear your comments.......

Spicelady

Hiya
Just an update really

I phoned the ESA today had a conversation with the call centre person, did a brief explaination of what the scenario was and it was decided I should have a call back.

This person actually understood a bit more about what I wanted to do. That is me ESA C and partner CA IS, so both our NI gets paid ( as advised by Epitome)

I got them to check what was on the screen as such,
ESA IR has been stopped (which I wanted and had a letter to confirm this recently)
ESA C they have only been paying my National Insurance but no actual money into my Post office account.

I had also checked my PO account balance this morning before I phoned up. A big fat Zero !

So I waited for my call back, they did phone but I just missed the call...... I ran downstairs but just missed it.
I phoned back the ESA and it stated they had phoned and there was no answer

So I will hopefully get a call back tomorrow.

Im hoping it will be a simple..... we are lifting the suspension on the ESA C from August......and here is your backdated money
Phone IS to tell them of this......however I do feel this will be highly unlikely as its too simple !

Thanks again

Spicelady

Another update..... after I missed the call. I phoned back the call centre and they put another call back to be done for me

When they phoned the line was crackled I could not hear them( never happened before), and asked them to phone back in 10 mins which he didn't.

So I phoned the call centre after an hour and was told the suspension was lifted on my ESA. And the money which was owed to me would be paid.
At that point she couldn't give me more info than that. So Ive waited for some letters to come

Which one came today..... and they are paying me the Income related ESA. Ahhhhhh!
I think the person who sorted it out didn't have the full information. Ive explained it so many times now on the phone to call centre staff.....and missed the essential first call back and a call which came through the line so crackled.

I will still have to phone them up and sort it out again. They have paid me arrears since August which is a good thing

So it states living expenses 71.70
Disab Inc Guart 15.15
Support group 34.80
Total 121.65

So I am back to where I started really

As Ive explained before (which posters have told me) my partner is on IS and we can not have the two means tested benefits, and I need the ESA to be under the Contribruty.

So I shall have to start again with the phone calls.......so frustrating.

Spicelady

Honestly....its like a big vortex going nowhere

I phoned today the call centre, briefly explained that I wanted the ESA to be Contributry rather than IR ESA, (as we were both on Income related benefits) and she said she didn't know if I could just swop them over etc. went off and checked with someone

Also that it depended on how much tax I had paid in the last 2 years

I had stated that I had been on long term Incapacity benefit and that I would think that it had been paid etc etc

I asked for a call back and she said they wouldnt be able to do it over the phone and I would have to sign something stating the facts etc

She would send me a form ESA3 through

Im getting so fed up with this, its beyond stupid. The thing is they (call backs people ) have acted on themselves without me explaining the whole scenario. When they put me on the ESA IR again.......

Its just a big circle and chasing my own tail

If Epitome is about I would be grateful for more advice.......

Thanks

Spicelady

Ive also just read this on the CAB ESA info

To qualify for contributory ESA, you have to have paid enough national insurance contributions. However, this doesn't apply if the DWP converts your Incapacity Benefit or Severe Disablement Allowance into contributory ESA

Now in bold is what had happened last year....Aug 2012
(it was Cont Esa and IR ESA)

Do they only pay it for 365 days and then put you in IR ESA ? (Which I can not have technically due to my partner IS)

But I am in the SUPPORT group and I thought that the time limit of 365 was not applied

This is driving me crazy to be honest

Any help would be appreciated Thanks

epitome

Hi,

You ignore the ESA3 if it ever arrives.

This has to be done by a callback.

You insist on a callback being booked for you, you will not accept ANYTHING but a callback.
If anyone tells you you cannot remove ESA IR to get ESA Conts alone, they don't know what they are talking about.
If anyone says you need an ESA3, they don't know what they are talking about
If anyone says you need to have paid the last 2 years tax, they don't know what they are talking about.
If anyone says you can't do this by phone they don't know what they are talking about.

If anyone refuses to book you a callback you take:
their name (first name only)
the name of their contact centre
and their team number
*you can take these 3 things at the start of the call if you like before you ask them anything it helps to stop them from hanging up on you, If you listen closely at the start of the call they tell you their name and the name of the contact centre just say "Pardon, can you repeat your name and contact centre please".

If you are being refused a callback after taking the above info, you ask to speak to their teamleader either on this call or the teamleader to call you back. To the teamleader you re-iterate you need ESA Conts only with no IR element and to do this you need to speak directly to the Benefit Centre so you NEED a callback. If the teamleader refuses you a callback - take their name and request them to take a formal complaint from you that they are refusing to let you speak to the Benefit Centre and you wish to have a written response within 14 days. (I can believe that an telephone agent might refuse a callback but I cannot believe that a teamleader would do so).

***If you are booked a callback (take their name and contact centre name), then after the call has finished phone straight back after 10 minutes & speak to someone else and ask them to confirm that there is a callback booked in HOTT for you. Ask them to actually look in HOTT to confirm this, i.e. you don't want them reading the previous note and saying "yes she has booked a callback" (just because it says so in the notes).

Phone in the morning get a callback the same day by 16:30.

The request for a callback should say
"Customer wants suspension to be lifted and claim converted to be ESA Conts only, remove the ESA IR from the claim, her partner is remaining on Income Support. Please call customer to confirm this"

Your partner should phone Income Support to make sure that it has not been closed by ESAs request.

They have just paid you ESA IR, which is ridiculous because you were supposed to be on suspension until you spoke to them and they should have checked and seen that Income Support was still open and in payment so why did they release ESA IR payment? Jeeez!

You are in the support group your ESA Conts is not limited to 365 days.
You are already entitled to ESA C.

DO NOT ACCEPT ANYTHING OTHER THAN A CALLBACK

epitome

HOTT is the software they use to book you a callback.

Hopefully when you get your callback from the BC you won't get an idiot from that department. But if when they call you back they don't do what you want ask to speak to their team leader. Trust me, this is absoultely possible to be done. option 3.

If it's too stressful after tomorrows attempt then print this out go to C.A.B. and ask them to call for you.