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FairPlay77

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  1. If payment for work done previously is received after someone has started receiving Pension Credit, does it have to be declared? If it is declared, will the Pension Credit be docked?
  2. Could someone please help me with the following questions: 1. If payment is received from previous work after someone has started receiving Pension Credit does that payment have to be declared and will it be deducted from the Pension Credit? 2. If a person starts a part-time job while receiving pension credit will wages for that job be deducted from Pension Credit, or is there a certain amount that can be earned before deductions kick in?
  3. Can someone who is knowledgeable on pensions law please tell me whether Pension Credit payments have to stop at the age when a person would normally qualify for the State Pension or can they continue as a 'topping up' measure if the person concerns does not qualify for the full retirement pension?
  4. WHAT is the position is someone is (a) receiving pension credit or (b) the old-age pension?
  5. IT might not be much use to an individual but it would be extremely useful to anyone in the media investigating bailiff abuse!
  6. THERE is no need to be terrified. As long as you have not previously granted permission for the bailiff to enter your home, he is POWERLESS, and he knows it: that's why he was so angry when you spoke to him. If a bailiff or anyone you suspect of being a bailiff calls, do not open the door and do not even speak to them, and of course make sure that all doors and windows are closed so that he cannot gain entry. The charges he is trying to extort from you are grossly excessive. The correct charges are £24.50 for a first visit, plus £18 for a subsequent visits. Your best bet is to complain in writing, in the strongest possible terms, to the council about the threatening behaviour of their bailiff, pointing out that as the bailiff co is under contract to the council, the council is responsible for the bailiffs' behaviour. Asl at the same time for the council to take back your account, and start paying them anyway, in affordable instalments, electronically or by standing order. DO NOT send money to the bailiff and deal only with the council. Once you have started paying them, they are not going to refuse your money.
  7. British Gas are threatening to charge me £14 because I have not been able to settle my bill, despite paying £10 weekly. As this is less than they have demanded, they have taken me off their instalment plan and are demanding I pay the balance in full and have given me ten days to do so. My questions are as follows: 1. Is the £14 charge legal, or is it something that needs to be taken to the courts in the same way as excessive bank charges have beeen? 2. How can I, and others in the same situation, launch a legal challenge against British Gas over their excesssive charges? 3. How the hell can tBritish Gas expect anyone to pay their penalty charge if they do not provide proof that the amount asked for actually represents the true cost to them of sending out a reminder, etc? I believe that £14 is a grossly exaggerated charge and that they are cynically and immorally trying to extort unjustified extra profits from people who are genuinely unable to pay. 3. I intend to complain to British Gas, telling them that I refuse to pay the £14. If they refuse to cancel the charge, who can I complain to? I believe there used to be a regulator called Energy Watch, but I understand that they no longer exist. Any advice would be appreciated.
  8. IF the council are stupid enough to send back your postal order, send it straight back to them with a note saying that you demand that they accept it for the year that you have specificied. And to make them see sense, complain about their silliness to your local councillor. In future, though, it would be better to pay them by Standing Order if you have a usable bank account or, if you have a credit or debit card, you can pay online.
  9. It seems from your first post that the bailiff only made one visit to your home. If that is the case, he can only charge for one visit, i.e. £24.50.
  10. IS there any way you can hide your car? If not, perhaps the best thing to do is to TEMPORARILY go on dealing with the bailiffs but, at the same time, gather together all the evidence you can about their unlawful behaviour, such as their illegal letter charges, and report them to the council, saying that, as the bailiffs have tried to defraud you, you demand that the council take back the account. If the council refuses, you can then complain to your local councillor and get him/her to intervene on your behalf. From what you have said, the correct bailiff charges so far are: £24.50 for their first visit (if such a visit has taken place) and £18 for their second visit (if it has happened). As they have not succeeded in levying on your property they cannot add on extra charges, no matter how many times they call at your address. To stay the bailiffs' hands as far as your car is concerned, I think you should send them a strongly worded letter about their illegal charges and demand a breakdown of what they claim you owe.
  11. I THINK you can take it as read that the £250 went straight into his pocket. Ask the bailiff company for a breakdown of your account. You need to be free of these vultures, so I suggest that you ask the council to take back the account and that you put them in the picture concerning the bailiff fees and your personal difficulties. If you have difficulty in getting the account taken back, speak to your local councillor. If you are eligible for a 20 per cent student discount, then obviously you should point this out to the council.but are you sure you should be paying council tax at all if you are a student? Full-time students are often exempt from council tax.
  12. MY understanding is that if, for example, a bailiff looks through a window and spots, say, a computer or TV and puts it on a WPO but it is not signed by the home's occupant then it is not valid. In any case, as the bailiff in such a case would not have gained entry, the WPO is UNENFORCEABLE. I
  13. BEFORE you do anything else, you need to find out how much the bailiffs are trying to charge you in fees over and above the amount owed to the council. The chances are that they are over-charging you - a common bailiff practice - in which case you will find that you owe less than you previously thought. Also, you need to find out whether the Walking Possession Orders are valid. Have you, for example, actually signed a WPO or are the bailiffs trying to charge you for a WPO you have never signed? And have the bailiffs ever been allowed into your home? Do you know the name of the bailiffs that have visited? if you do, you can check with the Ministry of Justic whether they are properly registered. Sometime it turns out that they are not! One other point: the bailiff is lying when he says your husband will probably be sent to prison. As you have not deliberately refused to pay and have made what you consider to be reasonable offers, that is simply not going to happen.
  14. THERE'S no law that says you have to deal with bailiffs. They are no more than tinpot private companies who happen to have a contract with the council. I would advise you to break off all contact with the bailiffs and start paying the council direct (they are not going to refuse your money!). Eventually, Jacobs will get the message and return the account to the council anyway. If in the meatime the company attempts to contact you, refuse to speak to them. They are not the police, and they have absolutely no hold over you (unless you choose to let them). Forget about them, and solve your problem by paying off your debt, at a more reasonable rate than Jacobs would charge you, direct to the council.
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