Grrrr! ESA, ATOS, the DWP and HMRC!

janiebquick

Please excuse me while I have a rant!

I am currently in receipt of an occupational pension and have two part-time teaching jobs. For convenience, my personal tax allowance is attached to my pension, with my jobs both taxed at basic rate.

Last year, I was diagnosed with cancer and received SSP until December 31st. I then claimed ESA and, because of my pension, I receive only £7.12 a week. I did write asking if this was correct but yet to receive a reply.

I was sent form ESA50, which I completed, got my GP to write his bit on the back page and duly sent it off in plenty of time for the March 4th deadline that I was given. I was, therefore, a bit taken aback on March 6th (a mere two days later) to receive a letter telling me that, as they had not received my completed ESA50, I was deemed capable of work as from March 4. The day after, a P45 arrived! What efficiency!

At that point, I asked myself whether it was really worth continuing to claim for a mere £7.12 a week, but decided that writing to the DWP was probably worth the price of a stamp. And, lo and behold, my ESA has now been reinstated!

Now we come to the bit that I am absolutely seething with rage about. Today, I got a letter from HMRC with a new tax code. My tax free allowance has been reduced because HMRC seem to think that I have received £1003 in ESA. It is clear from the letter that they know my tax allowance is applied to my pension yet, because I have a pension I have actually received less than one tenth of that amount! Do the DWP and HMRC actually ever talk to each other?

I am just livid. Believe me, the princely sum of £7.12 a week is certainly not worth all this hassle!

tomtom256

Maybe you should try talking to HMRC instead of expecting the DWP to.

From your post it shouldn't be an issue.

lemontart

see if there is a local office for hrmc - make an appt if possible and speak to them face to face - much more helpful in my experience

Tally-Ho_2

janiebquick wrote: »

Please excuse me while I have a rant!

I am currently in receipt of an occupational pension and have two part-time teaching jobs. For convenience, my personal tax allowance is attached to my pension, with my jobs both taxed at basic rate.

Last year, I was diagnosed with cancer and received SSP until December 31st. I then claimed ESA and, because of my pension, I receive only £7.12 a week. I did write asking if this was correct but yet to receive a reply.

I was sent form ESA50, which I completed, got my GP to write his bit on the back page and duly sent it off in plenty of time for the March 4th deadline that I was given. I was, therefore, a bit taken aback on March 6th (a mere two days later) to receive a letter telling me that, as they had not received my completed ESA50, I was deemed capable of work as from March 4. The day after, a P45 arrived! What efficiency!

At that point, I asked myself whether it was really worth continuing to claim for a mere £7.12 a week, but decided that writing to the DWP was probably worth the price of a stamp. And, lo and behold, my ESA has now been reinstated!

Now we come to the bit that I am absolutely seething with rage about. Today, I got a letter from HMRC with a new tax code. My tax free allowance has been reduced because HMRC seem to think that I have received £1003 in ESA. It is clear from the letter that they know my tax allowance is applied to my pension yet, because I have a pension I have actually received less than one tenth of that amount! Do the DWP and HMRC actually ever talk to each other?

I am just livid. Believe me, the princely sum of £7.12 a week is certainly not worth all this hassle!

Hi,

I too am in receipt of an Occupational Pension and also put in a claim for ESA, so know the problems you currently face.

Basically when one claims a 'taxable benefit' then HMRC automatically allocate ones annual tax allowances to the DWP (and in effect remove them from your Occupational Pension). This is because the government have stated that this is the way it will happen.

However, once ones ESA payments have stabilised, then it is possible to get any tax allowance (not used up by ones ESA payments) allocated back to ones Occupational Pension. All it took in my case was a single phone call to HMRC. I do emphasize though that it does take a few weeks for your ESA to stabilise, but once HMRC can see how much you are receiving, it is pretty straightforward to sort out.

As for your amount of ESA, do bear in mind, when you are claiming Contributory Based ESA, then for any amount of Occupational Pension received over £85.00 per week, you will lose 50p off your ESA for every £1.00 of Occupational Pension received over this £85.00 ceiling (If claiming Income Related ESA then any Occupational Pension received reduces pound for pound your amount of ESA).

Due to my Occupational Pension, my Contributory Based ESA is reduced to £4.11 per week. However the way I look at it is I paid enough NI Contributions over my working life and the government would not thank me for not claiming ESA!!

Infact if you do receive Contribution Based ESA and do not maintain the claim, then in the future any right to claim Contribution Based ESA could be lost (due to the qualification rules about having to have made NI Contributions in the preceding two tax years).

TH