Universal Credit and the Financial Ombudsman

To cut a long story short, 5 months ago I spent a short amount of time between jobs and was due around £470 UC (incl housing costs) for 1 month.

I ended up getting £7 as my old employer had their PAYE dates wrong on the system so UC took into account earnings they shouldn't have. I informed them of this and went into the jobcentre and provided bank statements to show that the earnings infact were paid on a different date to their records, a day where the earnings would not be taken into account. Anyway, 3 weeks passed and I hadn't heard anything so I opened up a complaint, got a phone call a few days later and the bloke from the complaints team told me that they had sent this over to HMRC to investigate and get in touch with my old employer to check if the information is correct, I was fine with this and was advised that if the old employer doesn't respond then they will send this to a decision maker.

Since then my online account / journal has been closed, I received a letter stating my complaint has been closed and I cannot get in touch with them as the normal Universal Credit helpline people cannot talk about it, it has to be the complaints team who you can't contact directly, they can only call you back apparently which is a complete piss take as they don't arrange it and only try randomly when you're at work etc. Anyway, I have been advised that it is still with HMRC and they are waiting to hear from my old employer and that "there is no timeframe for this". Am I the only one thinking this is a complete joke? What happened to "if the old employer doesn't respond then they will send this to a decision maker". The reality of this is I'm lucky I have other funds and don't have kids to feed etc.

It's been over 4 months now and it's starting to really piss me off, are you able to open a case with the ombudsman against a government department? Is there anyone on here who can give me advice on this? I've spend countless hours writing in and on the phone and I'm at the point now where I can't even face trying to contact them about it as I know I'll just be fobbed off after waiting on hold for 30 minutes.

Any advice is appreciated.
 


Sounds shitty mate, what about the citizens advise centre ?

Never thought about them tbh, I'll give them a call as I'm too busy with work for a few weeks to do anything else on an evening.

Can you not ask your old employer why they haven't responded?

My old employer reckons they haven't heard from HMRC, its a complete joke of a company with an absolute clampet working in HR.

Get in touch with your MP. They can help sort UC messes out.

My MP is a clown who never responds to emails, I've emailed him 3 times regarding previous issues and never received 1 response.
 
Anyone in the Peterlee and surrounding area who have any issues with Universal Credits should contact East Durham Trust they will help out,they are brilliant.I do voluntary work for them and they are a great bunch of people.They also run the local Food Bank..0191 569 3511
 
To cut a long story short, 5 months ago I spent a short amount of time between jobs and was due around £470 UC (incl housing costs) for 1 month.

I ended up getting £7 as my old employer had their PAYE dates wrong on the system so UC took into account earnings they shouldn't have. I informed them of this and went into the jobcentre and provided bank statements to show that the earnings infact were paid on a different date to their records, a day where the earnings would not be taken into account. Anyway, 3 weeks passed and I hadn't heard anything so I opened up a complaint, got a phone call a few days later and the bloke from the complaints team told me that they had sent this over to HMRC to investigate and get in touch with my old employer to check if the information is correct, I was fine with this and was advised that if the old employer doesn't respond then they will send this to a decision maker.

Since then my online account / journal has been closed, I received a letter stating my complaint has been closed and I cannot get in touch with them as the normal Universal Credit helpline people cannot talk about it, it has to be the complaints team who you can't contact directly, they can only call you back apparently which is a complete piss take as they don't arrange it and only try randomly when you're at work etc. Anyway, I have been advised that it is still with HMRC and they are waiting to hear from my old employer and that "there is no timeframe for this". Am I the only one thinking this is a complete joke? What happened to "if the old employer doesn't respond then they will send this to a decision maker". The reality of this is I'm lucky I have other funds and don't have kids to feed etc.

It's been over 4 months now and it's starting to really piss me off, are you able to open a case with the ombudsman against a government department? Is there anyone on here who can give me advice on this? I've spend countless hours writing in and on the phone and I'm at the point now where I can't even face trying to contact them about it as I know I'll just be fobbed off after waiting on hold for 30 minutes.

Any advice is appreciated.

Which office was your UC claim at ?
A complaint is defined as any expression of dissatisfaction about the service provided which is not resolved by operational staff as normal business.

You can contact us about any aspect of the service you’ve received, including:

  • mistakes that have been made
  • unreasonable delays
  • how you’ve been treated
  • not being kept informed
Have you raised the RTI (real time information) dispute ? You will have done this in your local office ?
If so have you had the decision back, if so raise a mandatory reconsideration of that decision

Personally, if you want to get people really looking at your case, and get a time bound response, I would raise a complaint, but this has to be about the way you have been treated , not the outcomes of your claim.
This link goes to the District Office for the site where you made your claim.
They will then ask the office manager to fully investigate and respond.

So you would stress the "not being kept informed" and I would specifically get a line in around " I have done the right thing, getting back into work, yet this has closed my claim, and artificially closed down my original complaint, which remains outstanding".

If this doesnt get you anywhere, then you go to ICE.

 
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To cut a long story short, 5 months ago I spent a short amount of time between jobs and was due around £470 UC (incl housing costs) for 1 month.

I ended up getting £7 as my old employer had their PAYE dates wrong on the system so UC took into account earnings they shouldn't have. I informed them of this and went into the jobcentre and provided bank statements to show that the earnings infact were paid on a different date to their records, a day where the earnings would not be taken into account. Anyway, 3 weeks passed and I hadn't heard anything so I opened up a complaint, got a phone call a few days later and the bloke from the complaints team told me that they had sent this over to HMRC to investigate and get in touch with my old employer to check if the information is correct, I was fine with this and was advised that if the old employer doesn't respond then they will send this to a decision maker.

Since then my online account / journal has been closed, I received a letter stating my complaint has been closed and I cannot get in touch with them as the normal Universal Credit helpline people cannot talk about it, it has to be the complaints team who you can't contact directly, they can only call you back apparently which is a complete piss take as they don't arrange it and only try randomly when you're at work etc. Anyway, I have been advised that it is still with HMRC and they are waiting to hear from my old employer and that "there is no timeframe for this". Am I the only one thinking this is a complete joke? What happened to "if the old employer doesn't respond then they will send this to a decision maker". The reality of this is I'm lucky I have other funds and don't have kids to feed etc.

It's been over 4 months now and it's starting to really piss me off, are you able to open a case with the ombudsman against a government department? Is there anyone on here who can give me advice on this? I've spend countless hours writing in and on the phone and I'm at the point now where I can't even face trying to contact them about it as I know I'll just be fobbed off after waiting on hold for 30 minutes.

Any advice is appreciated.

Murder IDS
 
Thought up by the bloke who wants us all to work until we're dead.

Not quite true. When Gordon Brown was PM the concept was put to him in 2008. He thought the idea was so toxic that it could never be endorsed. Just think, an idea so bad that not even Gordon Brown would touch it with a bargepole

David Cameron and IDS had other ideas though. Including handing the IT contract for it to one of their buddies, who then fucked it up so much that it eventually had to be replaced at a cost to the taxpayer of £600m.
 
Initial ideas for Universal Credit were decent. The problem was that so many tinkered with it, it went from being common sense, to being even worse tgan the system it is meant to replace.

To add to the fun, they took the work allowance from what would have been the Jobseeker's Allowance claimants making small hours or zero hour contracts not worth it.

They still crow on about a work allowance, but never mention it is only for equivalents of Income Support or ESA only.

Now the whole thing is a mess. I have no idea of how a better system can be created, as you have to consider pre ious systems to make sure the majority aren't made worse off.

Good luck to those trying to make it usable.
 
This made me laugh out loud....MP helping with UC...half of them wouldn’t know a thing about it....

I can remember when the CSA was set up my local (Tory) MP flatly refused to see any of his constituents in connection with CSA gripes cos it was leaving him no time for owt else.
 
I can remember when the CSA was set up my local (Tory) MP flatly refused to see any of his constituents in connection with CSA gripes cos it was leaving him no time for owt else.
Exactly....a few month ago we had Ricky Tomlinson open the Universal Credits Room at the place I do voluntary work at..he gives more support than any MP...he said if someone would organise a march against UC he would be at the front of it...it’s only his health which stops he being more active....good bloke took no appearance money,paid own train fare...even brought his own drink with him...
 

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