Why do HMRC pay credits four-weekly?

zagfles

dori2o wrote: »

The initial tax credits award of any year is based upon the previous years income as ou correctly state (though it is not retrospective), but there is never any reason for overpayment to occur as long as any increase in income, above the disregard is notified to HMRC as early as possible rather than waiting for the next renewal period.

It is every individuals responsibility to notify HMRC of income changes for tax credit purposes. If your daughter didn't do that then she has only herself to blame I'm afraid.

This is complete rubbish. There are lots of circumstances in which an overpayment can occur even if the claimant immediately tells HMRC of income changes and even if HMRC correctly update their records. It's down to the way the system is designed.

Nada666

If you can not balance and adjust your behaviour for a week or two at a time for a month or two so as to build up a calendar month buffer then being paid monthly is not going to help. Your daughter would simply spend her monthly credit the first week and be scuppered the rest of the month.

Family allowances and child benefit have always had weekly options so that children of careless parents have a chance each week of having some bread and meat bought for them.

MegaMiniMouse

Nada666 wrote: »

If you can not balance and adjust your behaviour for a week or two at a time for a month or two so as to build up a calendar month buffer then being paid monthly is not going to help. Your daughter would simply spend her monthly credit the first week and be scuppered the rest of the month.

Family allowances and child benefit have always had weekly options so that children of careless parents have a chance each week of having some bread and meat bought for them.

The difference would be that she would know when her money was going to arrive, and that it would show some kind of correspondence with her bill payments.

As I posted before, my daughter does now have a month's buffer, and I am working hard to get her to arrange for all of her bills to be paid in the early days of the month. But the welfare state offers no help or advice along these lines - it complains about its costs, and the need for cuts, but does nothing to streamline its service, nor to try to come to some kind of synchronous regime with employers, the councils and the utilities providers.

The universal credit is an imaginative idea, and I really hope it works, but there are many simpler steps which could be taken in the meantime.