Job Centre Plus Travel Discount Card

vosokec

I have been claiming Universal Credit since mid January due to losing my job last year in the pandemic. Last month I contacted my U/C advisor to arrange for me to be given a JCP travel discount card as I am entitled to one after three months of claiming, according to what I have read online. I was told that my local Job Centre was going to be opened up again yesterday and that I would have an appointment there where I could do the paperwork for this card, and please bring two photos. My appointment went into the system as a telephone appointment, but she said that this was because the system would not allow her to book anything other than telephone appointments at the time of booking the appointment.

I went to my local Job Centre as scheduled. Security met me at the door and directed me around a one way system. An administrator took my name and my reason for attending, she was surprised to see me as I was not expected. She looked me up on the system and then told me that I was down for a telephone appointment only, but saw on the system that I have requested a JCP travel discount card, so she called my U/C advisor to find out what was going on. Then she told me that my U/C advisor would explain to me the situation at the time of my telephone appointment, and so I waited for the scheduled time.

She explained that she was still working from home due to social distancing regulations dictating the numbers of people allowed in the office and I would have to wait until my next appointment in mid May to arrange the paperwork for this card. I tried to explain that I was not happy with missing my entitlement until then, but apparently she said the line was bad and she could not understand what I was saying - probably because I was forced to wear a mask in the Job Centre whilst making the call. I tried again to explain, but it was no good, I was told 'It's a bad connection'.

I tried to explain to the administrator that I was not happy about not getting the railcard I was entitled to, already it has been several weeks past when I should have been entitled to get it, and haven't been able to do so because the entire Job Centre team have been working from home due to the pandemic. 'All the paperwork is locked away in the safe', she said, 'your U/C advisor will sort it out for you at your next appointment.' I asked is there any way that I can fill the paperwork out now. 'Do you need a ticket to go to a job interview?' she asked. I told her no, that the JCP Travel Discount Card is not purely for travelling for work, everything I have read online says that it is a general travel discount for people who have been unemployed for longer than three months, and can be used for reduced price travel for any purpose if I met the conditions for issue of the railcard. 'No, it's only for work related travel' she said. I'm pretty sure she is wrong on this, but was fed up of being given the run around with the appointment, so I thanked her for her time and left...

Is this correct? Where is this stated in the terms? My local TOC have this to say about the card: [It seems that links are not permitted as I am new, but can be found by searching Scotrail Jobseeker travel discounts and looking at the 'Fast Track to work with the ScotRail Alliance' link]... "Cardholders are entitled to a 50% discount on selected rail tickets." Fares for travel to interviews (at the rate of two per month) is an additional allowance separate to the JCP travel discount and I would be claiming this benefit also if I were invited to interviews...

In any case, I am not happy with having to wait weeks even longer and losing out on my entitlement - I get that it will be issued for three months when I finally receive the card, but I can't avail myself of the fare discount until then... How to proceed?

Sorry for length, but I didn't want to leave anything out that would help other people understand my situation...

 

Diamandis

It's not an entitlement,  it's a discretionary benefit that's issued on a case by case basis. You'll just have to wait to apply.