Acolleague recently told me that he can now work/earn money of up to 15 hoursper week and £99 per week - and it will not effect his benefits ! This is despite him being in receipt ofIncome support, Incapacity benefit & DLA. I suggested that he checks things out thoroughly before doing anything. If one isable to work, shouldn't their benefits be re-assessed ? I have noidea what this system is called, so can't look into it. Any ideasplease ? Thanks forreading this.

Hi all, Whilst this matter is being sorted, I am concerned about the length of time, and the sequence of events by the retailer. About 18 months ago, I rebuilt my desktop computer. Most of the components came from SCAN International – obviously spending quite some cash. Not long after, the graphic card failed. I contacted SCAN who persuaded me to contact the manufacturer (nVidia/EVGA) [not even SCANs wholesaler/supplier]. Reluctantly I did this to save time, but it cost me money to return the item to Germany etc. 1/ About a fortnight ago, one of the 1Tb HDD’s (Seagate) failed, and I contacted SCAN again. They were insisting that I contact Seagate. It is still under warranty. This time I held fast and told them that as my contract is with them, it’s up to them to sort it out. After several emails, they eventually said that if I send it to them, they will return it to Seagate “on my behalf”. Obviously they expect me to wait for Seagate to comment/replace etc. Apparently; SCAN no longer sell Seagate gear. I think I’m right in saying that I have One contract – which is with SCAN. SCAN have TWO contracts. One with me and one with Seagate – and the two shouldn’t meet ? SCAN have received my original drive today, & found that it is indeed faulty. As my contract is with SCAN – shouldn’t they just replace the item,,,,, regardless of what they do with the returned one, and regardless of their contract with Seagate - & be pretty quick about it ? 2/ Separate issue: When a faulty item is returned under warranty, is it right that: i) any replacement is a refurbished item – not new, ii) any warranty on the replacement, is only as long as is left on the original ? thanks all. F

Hi all, I’m approaching 65 (don’t tell anyone – I think I’m still 35!?) After working in the building & allied trades all mylife, I am now disabled & have to live on benefits & am single. 1/ Pensions: As my age permits, I am currently in receipt of Pension Credit (PC) - including severe disability. In May, my pension will change to State Pension (SP). In my position, will I be better off, worse off or the same? For eg: a/ If I get £150 PC now – and after May I get SP of £125 –will PC make it up to £150 ? b/ If SP give me £165 – will PC say that I have £15 income ? c/ Generally speaking, are people better off when on SP or not ? 2/ DLA: As above – will I be better of, worse off or same when it turns into PIP ? Thanks for reading this - GB

I am trying to find a Solicitor to look into the mis-handlingof my parents Will/s. I am not looking for a freebie, so if you are a Solicitorthat specialises in this sort of thing, please PM me. I’m not interested in a ‘duty’ solicitor type who just wantsto fill forms in, but one that will actually fight my corner. To other readers: If you can recommend a Solicitor that’s acted foryou in a similar manner, please feel free to either PM me or put their detailshere (with their permission). Thank you for reading this.

Thanks all for pointing me in the right direction. I think my first thing is to write to the Bank (address as above) to ask how or why they supplied the information. If all is well (legal) - then end of fight. Initially I didn't actually suspect my Bank of doing wrong. Of course there is a difference between making a mistake, and knowingly doing something wrong - though the result might be the same. I wouldn't put money on my local council workers being so straight though. If anyone has anything to add, please feel free to do so. cheers G.Boy

Hi all, I’m just wondering if anyone has the definitive - legal - information on what procedure the DWP &/or Councils have to follow when appling to Banks for peoples account details ? I am in receipt of DLA & long term sickness benefit. 3.5 years ago, I had to attend a recorded interview – by my Councils Housing Benefit department, which was attended by the DWP as well. After the interview, the DWP decided that there was no reason to take action. The Council did try, but after some very deep and lengthy legal arguments decided not to prosecute me - though they do want me to repay some money. At the interview, the Council produced my Bank details, statements etc. At the time, I thought nothing of it, but when I speaking to my Bank manager last week, I casually mentioned this, & was shocked when they told me that they (DWP/Councils) can’t just apply to the Bank and that a Bank wouldn’t give out this information without a Court order (or similar). Questions: 1/ What do the DWP or Councils have to do to get peoples Bank account details ? 2/ How do we check that the correct procedure has been taken ? Thank you for reading this. Georgie Boy

Why ? Simple - He is named in the Will. If there is a way around that, i'd love to hear about it. My Sister & I found the Will & saw this. We knew straight away that there'd be a screw-up either by mistake, or design. Apart from the actual thefts, the whole thing has been mis-handled from the start. He has lost us thousands of pounds through his big-headedness and unwillingness to listen/discuss with the others opinions. I think he lost £100k on the sale of the bungalow alone,,, and £30k by moving the cash savings from a high interest account to the solicitors 'Client' account !

?????????????????????????????????????????? I'll dig mum & dad up and ask 'em !

It looks like a good [problem]. If no-one will help the innocent victims of this sort of thing, then it will continue to flourish. It is well known that Deaths & Marriages bring out the best & worst of people. I can certainly understand why some people would take the law into their own hands. thanks to all readers

thanks

I'm sorry to hear that you've had similar problems. My main point is that my siblings have actually stolen property belonging to the estate - me. I know that it will be difficult to prove mis-handling, especially when one can't find a Solicitor that will actually fight for it,,,, but they have conspired to rob me, & the thefts are self evident. As far as I am concerned, my family can now rot and burn in Hell. They don't deserve a family around them. If your idea is to let things go, then I'm sorry, I don't agree. Come on Lawyers,,,,,,,, give me some help - pleeeeease

I need Official/Legal help in sorting out a Will. My younger Brother is executor to our late parents estate. There are three siblings. (There has been a lot of mis-handling by the executor, resulting in loss of money from the estate - this post isn't about that, but gives an idea of why I'm so peeved ?!) The 'standard' Will states that the Estate is split equally three ways (a third share each). My Sister started stealing property from the Estate from the day after my fathers funeral. She told me it was with my Brothers blessing (they hadn't spoken previously for many years). Initially he knew nothing about it, but now they are both saying that it was with his blessing "as executor". Obviously this is wrong, & I sought the help of a Solicitor. He wrote to them both, who ignored the letters. The Solicitor says that he can't do much else !!!!!!!!!!! To my mind, a Will is an official & legal document. They have both gone against our parents wishes, and stolen part of my inheritance. What I need, is a Solicitor who is willing to fight for me,,,, I know there are thousands out there that are great at filling in forms and signing this and that,,,, but seem to shy away from actually fighting a case. 1/ I would love to hear from a Solicitor on these pages who is willing to actually fight for my rights. 2/ Failing that, personal recommendations would be good, from someone who's been through a similar experience. Time is of the essence now, as the bungalow that forms most of the estate has just been sold, so I need to do something - (make a claim against the Estate / sue my brother) - before the monies are divided up. I am already disabled, & all this is taking a terrible toll on me. thank you for reading

Many thanks - letter finally written & sent. Results here (if any) later. GB

Well,,,,, I did get a 'standardised' reply, but it was clear that no one had actually read my letter ! Their reply was (para) "Thank you for your complaint - It will take another 4 weeks to look into it" !!! My letter wasn't a complaint - merely asking about remarks on my 'on-line' C.Card statement. My next letter wasn't so pleasant - asking why they bother writing back at all if they don't even read the letter that they are replying to - etc. In the end, I did get a proper reply, an apology & a small cash 'gift'. Thank goodness my problem wasn't life threatening - as most problems with banking usually are. Good luck to the rest of you. GB

UPDATE: I received an e-mail from someone at Appliance Planet with the usual list of why 'they' arn't in the wrong ?! None of it detracts from the fact that the cooker dosn't have a Single Grill option, even though the User Manual refers to it & how to use it. Nor does it refer to Fagors own admittance that they have known about this for over two years - and done nothing about it. On 1st March 2010 I wrote again to the M.D replying fully to their e-mail and reminding them, that whilst my grievance isn't (or wasn't) with them, that I do have to work through them to get things sorted. Up to today, I havn't had the decency of a reply. Giving them the benefit of the doubt (they might not have received it ?!?!) I have today sent another copy, asking for a reply within 7 days. I now have no doubt that they intend to ignore my plea's and expect me to give up -- but I won't. Their address is London (N12) - does anyone know the address of their local TSO please ? I have to get this sorted as I'm disabled & still do not have a Hob to cook on - pending the outcome of this. Any other advice welcome.