Stuck in a loop with council and benifits

gingerben68

I started with a health issue over 15 years ago where I was told by the medical profession that I had to live with the problem that I had which I accepted and have plodded on ever since. I found myself unable to hold down a job due to my problem and was basically forced to go self employed turning my computer hobby into a small computer repair business, It’s not what I wanted to do but it gave me the opportunity to work when I was well enough to work. Over the past 3 years I have got a lot worse and suffer quite badly making me incapacitated 70% of the time. I have managed through inability to administer my 'administables' to get myself in stuck by not being able to adhere to appointments made for myself or deadlines for paying stuff. My question is just regarding the problem I am having with the council regarding council tax. I have told them that I only get a limited amount of time to sort problems out when I am capable of doing so yet they have no interest in this at all. The problem is that I make a claim for council tax benefit which on the first occasion I phoned them every week for nearly 2 months asking how my claim was progressing and if they needed any extra information they replied with sorry there is a major backlog and we will get to your claim shortly but there is no more information that they required. I feel ill and was incapassited for over 5 weeks only to go through my pile of mail to find my claim had been cancelled due to failure to supply the required information. I called them and they told me there was nothing they could do and it was my responsibility to provide them with the info that they needed. The council took me to court and got a liability order and we arranged payments to clear debt. This has happened 3 years in a row now I have claimed but due to my illness was unable to complete the claim due to failure to provide the information. I do provide all the info that they want at the start of the claim but as weeks go by they want more which imp incapable of providing due to my condition. I am fed up with constantly calling the council when I am well enough to do so and get treated like scum by them just to be told by them that there is nothing they can do but they insist that I carry on with the arrears payments which they are insisting that I pay more a month or they will send in the balifs.My question is, is there any point trying to get any help from my local MP regarding this matter as the council are totally unhelpful.
Thanks in advance for any constructive advice.

Dave

cattie

If you've already provided all the info the council need, then perhaps you need to photocopy everything so that if it's requested again you can simply send it to them again.

Unfortunately, when claiming benefits of any kind, which is government & tax payers money, you do need to jump through certain hoops & the liability to make sure any information asked for is the claimants.

You don't say exactly what your disability is, but if you're not able to collect/collate & post documentation off when asked for it, can't you simply ask somebody else to do it for you? This is what I've done when being too seriously ill to go out or even shuffle to the toilet using a walking frame.

The council are not treating you like scum, you just need to understand that there are hundreds of thousands of claimants & backlogs do occur. There is nothing personal in the way that they are dealing with you.

Failure to pay any due council tax on time does result in court cases, so it's always best to comply with their request for payment when it's made if at all possible & if you're due anything back, then make a claim for that afterwards.

fluffymovie

Unfortunately, legislation dictates the timeframe we can give someone to return information and so if you fall outside of this, that will be why your claims have been unsuccessful.

Each council now has it's own scheme for Council Tax Reduction and with that, it means it's impossible to comment but in my LA, we have the default scheme which means taht you can still ask for your award to be backdated and have to show continous good cause which, if you are unwell, could be a letter from your GP or consultant to explain the issues you face.

I would second the suggestion that you ask for support in dealing with your paperwork, perhaps CAB or someone coudl assist you.

If you go to your MP, they will contact the council for you and it might help to explain the situation but if you know why your claims are failing then i am not sure what they can do?

BigAunty

gingerben68 wrote: »

My question is just regarding the problem I am having with the council regarding council tax. I have told them that I only get a limited amount of time to sort problems out when I am capable of doing so yet they have no interest in this at all. .. due to my illness was unable to complete the claim due to failure to provide the information. ...My question is, is there any point trying to get any help from my local MP regarding this matter as the council are totally unhelpful.

No harm in contacting your MP, they are there to serve you.

Look into getting support from a disability rights organisation for advice on your rights and help with your claims.

Go to the Debt Free wanabee board on this website and the bods there can help you with your budget and debts, help with a debt management strategy and provide a link to free expert debt charities. Download the MSE budget planner to get a full handle on your income, expenses and debts.

If you read the information on the Debt section of the Gov Direct website, you will see how they impress on people how important it is to prioritise the payment of council tax and any debts relating to it because it can lead to a criminal conviction. That, and things like rent, are considered the most important to pay and to deal with arrears.

Good luck with sorting it out.