Have just read this article and am quite disgusted by energy companies at the moment. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-37521168 Since the regulator said they weren't going to pursue this practice, energy companies have brought back in new customer only deals that are in many cases over £200 a year cheaper. So I had a few questions about switching and how it affects other things 1: If you have applied for the Warm Home Discount (I just have), does switching mean you have to apply again with the new supplier (if they are part of the scheme). 2: What happens if you are awarded the WHD and then switch... do you still get the full amount credited to your account? 3: If you have solar panels fitted as my mum does with EON, what happens to the Feed In Tarrif... Does that stay with EON or do you have to transfer it over to the new supplier? Because my mum had so many problems with EON over the FiT and really doesn't want the hassle of that all over again. On top of that they've just informed my mum that they're raising her DD from £59 to £70... which is a pain because all they've done is drop it to eat up the credit over the summer and then hike it for the winter... But as my dad died in July, her usage has dropped by around 30% but won't be reflected in her bills or DD until next year. It's time energy companies were held to account for these disgusting practices... Both my mum and I want to switch and take advantage of these new customer only offers... But need to know if these obstacles will cause issues... Losing the WHD of around £140 would easily be offset by new customer deals that could save me around £200 over the next 12 months.

EDF is now live and I've already applied.

EDF say that their 2016/17 WHD will be going live after the 29th Sept

Yeah, we also discovered that if the ISA is more than £5000 then a form needs to be signed and witnessed by a solicitor. Not sure on the exact cost as it may vary from one solicitor to another. .. But we were charged £200 + VAT and another £200 + VAT for the deed transfers. I know that the solicitors we used are expensive, but they've also been really efficient and their customer service has been top notch. (we had a nasty experience with an incompetent solicitor when my brother died in 2007, and he messed up so much and overcharged that we had to get the Legal Complaint Service involved who found in our favour and we got a partial refund).

My dad left a will, that stated simply that everything passed to my mum if he died first, after that it was to be divided between my sister and I... My sister gets an extra little lump sum from the sale of the house (after both have died) to even out some help my folks gave me to buy a house. All my dad has was a small amount of savings and his share of the house. The house has now passed to my mum and the savings used to pay all of the funeral costs, wake, flowers and so forth. There's probably less than £1000 left out of that. My mum has no intention of leaving the house she shared with my dad since 1973. No probate was applied for as it wasn't required, all that was needed was a couple of forms to be signed to release the funds in my dads ISA and transfer the deed of the property. I've been working out my mums income and expenditure now that all of her income is sorted out and she has enough coming in to pay all the bills, and have a little spending money each month... But if she has to then pay an additional £126 a month on the solar panels it means she has more to pay out each month than coming in. Also, I've worked out that the income from the solar panels is almost half of what we were told they would earn... They were sold them on the basis of not only saving money (about £35-40 a month so far, but that will change with only 1 person in the house and not needing to do 1 or 2 daily washing machine loads along with extra dishwasher, lights and equipment my dad used to help). .. the last 12 months provided just £532 income which isn't even close to the £1000+ promises made. .. they also lost out on over 2000 units for the FiT because Eon failed to register their account and then refused to accept the reading from 0 the day of installation and only from the date it was registered.. . which was in August 2015 after it was installed in April 2015, so they lost over £400 income that way too.

We've not heard anything from Icano since we sent of the death certificate, all of the funeral expenses have now been paid from my dads savings and the house has been transferred into my mums name... There's virtually nothing left of his savings now as it turned out to be less than I initially thought and the funeral and extra expenses came to around £5600

I've been getting this for the last 2 winters with EDF and it's made a huge difference to my bills... No longer do I need to worry about putting the heating on when it's cold in the winter. In addition to that, the last 2 winters have been milder around here than usual and it's resulted in me getting 2 refunds in the last 9 months of £132 and £92 and my monthly DD has dropped from £75 to £59. Definitely worth applying for to see if you qualify, I shall be applying again this year as my circumstances haven't changed.

I'll be getting it sorted 1st Sept... simply because I don't have the money until the end of the month now... got run out the road the other day and needed a new tyre... thankfully the dashcam caught the plonker and I've sent it to the police.

I checked before I started this htread and it showed as taxed, I've just this minute checked again and it's still showing as taxed.

She had another letter this morning, the DLA side has been stopped as of the 25th July and the care side will be stopped as of the 19th Sept... Why it's done this way I have no idea... but it's welcome as we are still doing a lot of stuff to sort out my dads affairs.

You're already looking for reasons to excuse the slip, this says you are not ready and perhaps you should wait until you are instead of setting yourself up for a failure... one that I suspect would see you at risk of slipping further.

My mum had a letter from the DWP the other day, it said that the DLA would be stopped from the 19th Sept 2016... No idea why that date was chosen as my father died on the 21st July but it's the Monday 8 weeks after he died. So would this mean I don't have to worry about the tax until after that date? The longer I can delay this the better as I'd prefer not to have car tax and car insurance needing to be renewed within a couple of weeks of each other.

I don't know about the panels... the company that they went through supplied and fitted the panels, whilst Icano Bank provided the loan. I'd have to see the actual agreement to know any more than that. Also, I found out yesterday that Icano had taken another direct debit payment out of my mums account of some £126.. . This after the date of my dads passing and after his name has been removed from the joint account. Would she be within her rights to have that direct debit returned under the DD guarantee as it's not her debt and the bank account is no longer in my fathers name.

Hi all, I hope you can help with this question as I'm unsure and can find no information about my particular problem on the DVLA site, nor can I actually get through to a human being for advice... Their IVR system is a complete and utter joke. For the last 5-6yrs I have been using my car to transport my disabled dad around. He lost his license on medical grounds in 2009 and his motability car was returned. We then found out that he could nominate me as a designated driver/owner of a vehicle and have it registered for disabled use and get the road tax for free. Over the years I've changed cars a couple of times, getting a larger one to accommodate a wheelchair and so forth. I'd take them on trips and holidays, to the doctors and hospital appointments and shopping... ect, ect. The car was last taxed for 12 months at the beginning of July. Sadly my father passed away towards the end of July, and although the car is still showing as taxed online... I am uncertain as to whether I will be required to register the car as normal use and purchase road tax or if the tax will run it's course until the end of June 2017 and I will have to do it then. I have literally spent hours attempting to research the answer to this, along with half a dozen calls to the DVLA and their IVR system simply doesn't have an option to select for my query and I keep ending up at dead ends and there is zero options to be put through to an actual person... I've wasted 3-4hrs on the phone alone listening to their stupid system and it's driving me nuts. It's a simple question... do I need to re-tax the car or not. Typical govt bureaucracy makes that all but impossible to find out.

Sorry for the delay, had the funeral and everything to deal with and just didn't feel like doing anything else. My dad had parkinsons, and what they call parkinsons dementia (not alzheimers). As they jointly owned the home and my dad was considered unable to make decisions for himself anymore.. . My mum decided to protect her share of the house in case dad had to be placed in care at any point. Bear in mind this was around Feb of this year and he was doing pretty good. After speaking with a solicitor, they advised that my mum should change her will and they should separate the ownership of the house. If anything happened to my mum first, half the house would be placed in trust for my sister and I and probably rented out to pay any extra fees that would be needed to place my dad in care. his disability benefits and pension, + a rental income would have been more than enough to cover a decent place for him. My mum also set up legal power of attorney for my sister and I as well as adjusting her will. My dads will remained the same, everything goes to my mum if alive and after that their house is split between my sister and I along with any savings. The loan was taken out when my dad was more capable of making decisions, in fact he was more for having the solar panels fitted than my mum or I . The loan was for just under £10k, and over the course of 10yrs will total around £15k. Sadly my dad suffered a few falls this year, and each time he had one... whilst not injured physically... it took a great toll on him all the same. The dementia side got rapidly worse in the last 6-8 months and after a fall in mid May, again uninjured aside from bumps and bruises... he became bed ridden and sadly passed away due to the parkinsons causing his swallowing to become problematic, he inhaled a small amount of food which caused a severe lung infection, that became pneumonia and he died from respiratory failure due to his parkinsons. We have now sorted out my mums finances, and she will have enough to stay in the home and doesn't want to move at all. .. 43yrs living in that house with my dad and all the memories are not things she wants to leave behind. The solicitor is currently transferring the property into my mums name. All of my dads savings have been dealt with and total about £7k, with funeral expenses standing just under £5k mark at the moment with a few more small things to do. I estimate there will be about £1500-2000 left in my dads side of things. All of his benefits, pension have been stopped, accounts closed and we are just double checking that there isn't anyone else to notify. Due to the will and small amount of savings, probate wasn't needed, nor were letters of administration. We have notifed Icano bank, and are waiting for a letter from them so we can send a copy of the death certificate to them... Only then will they deal with me about the unsecured loan. The solicitor has advised that although they could go after part of the property, it's very unlikely, and even more unlikely that they could win and force it's sale. .. worse case scenario seems to be that they may place a lean on the property for payment when it's sold. .. which could be 10-15yrs down the road as my mum was younger than my dad and in reasonable health (touch wood). My thinking is that they may accept a part payment to finish the loan as they can't force my mum to take it on and although possible. .. very improbable they would try and force the sale of the house. With around £9k left on the loan... we were thinking that as dad had no other debts and there will only be at most £2k left from his savings ... that a final offer of (whatever is left) would be all that is possible... but it's roughly 1/5th of the total.

Hi all Hope you can help me with a few questions. My father passed away last week we are currently in the process of sorting out his affairs. He left a will and a small amount of savings. So far we are on top of everything after taking legal advice regarding an ISA with just over 5k in it have been informed that due to the small amount of savings and the will... probate isn't needed. But there is a loan outstanding that was unsecured and taken out in March/April of 2015 to have solar panels installed on their house. This loan was done soley in my late fathers name. Once the funeral expenses have all been paid out there isn't enough left over to clear the remainder of the balance.. . It won't even come close to putting a dent in the remaining £8.5k or so (I think the original amount was 10k) after about 15-16 months of paying £126 a month. He co-owned a house (they'd done a separation of tenancy to cover any potential problems should my dad have to go into care if my mum passed first) and my mum inherits everything. .. Which is the house and a small amount of savings (less than 7k total) and funeral expenses that are expected to be a little north of 5.5k. The loan in unsecured with Icanobank... but we need to know if my mum will be expected to continue with payments, or if a demand for the balance will be made (which cannot be paid in full) or if they may try to make a claim on the house when it's sold (my understanding is that they cannot try to force it's sale as it was an unsecured loan). There is a small mortgage remaining on their house of about 18k We are still in the process of sorting out my mums finances, she will retain 2/3 of my dads pension each month and the DWP are currently calculating her state pension but have said that my dads NI payments (mum only ever worked part time) can be used to top off my mums, so she should be getting the full £155 per week. This means that her income would be enough to cover all of her outgoings.. . unless she has to keep making payments on this loan in my dads name. Your advice would be most welcome as I want to be fully aware of legal rights and responsibilities before contacting them to inform them of his passing.

Well I've filled out the form as best I can... I've got my expired passport and my birth certificate, along with some new passport photos... the last being take in 2004 and my beard has gone very grey over the last 12yrs and my hair is a little longer. Just got to get the damn photo signed, but at least they seem to have relaxed this a little... But it's also asking for proof of NI number and my NI card was damaged 30yrs ago (cheap plastic crap that split and fell apart in my wallet) and I never bothered replacing it... Hasn't been a problem for the last 30yrs. It's almost like they DON'T want you to change your address at all... maybe they're hoping to fine people for not realizing that they've moved the goalposts yet again.

Unfortunately my passport expired last year and I've not got around to renewing it... because at the moment I have no plans for any trips abroad. Getting a photo isn't an issue... it's the ridiculous and misleading information they have on their forms and website that says you can change your address on your paper license, but then at the end says you are exchanging it for a photo one... likewise the forms state that you can get your address changed for free on a paper license but you have to send a photo in as proof of ID and it states that they charge £20 for a photo.

OK, I've been through that form and registered and filled everything out... only wanted to change address on my paper license... after I submitted the form it tells me at the top of the page exchange paper license for photo one... Which is not mentioned on any of the online forms I just filled out. Says it's sending me out a form to fill out/sign but I am pretty sure it will simply be the same form that I have sat on my desk and will have the same conflicting info printed on it. So after all that... I am still none the wiser if I can simply change my address and get a paper license back FOC as it implies... or if I am going to be FORCED to exchange for a photo one... Because their website isn't exactly clear on the matter.

Hi all Need some confirmation as the supplied documentation that comes with the form seems to contradict itself. I moved home, and need to get my paper license address changed. I was told that I'd need to upgrade to a photo ID type license. The form I have is D1 and makes no such assertion that I MUST upgrade to a phot license. It has a section just for changing the address on your paper license. In other parts of the form it says that I need to provide a photo (signed by recommended professional) as proof of identity... It also says that a change of address carries no charge, but supplying a phot carries a £20 charge... then goes on to say that changing from a paper license to a photo one carries no charge. To say that I'm confused is a little bit of an understatement and the woman in the Post Office didn't have a clue what I was on about. All I want to do is change the address on my license... but the form doesn't make it clear which if any fee applies or if I have to apply for a photo one... and if I do then is it no fee or a £20 fee... and it gives 2 different dept postcodes to send it too... one for a change of address and the other for updating to photo one.

As I no longer live in the same town, I am unable to go there in person... but I did speak with them on the phone last year and was told that they had no record of the final payment on their system... and unfortunately I no longer have proof that it was paid... this was 8yrs ago... I've moved twice since then and have cleared out an awful lot of old paperwork that was no longer needed as far as I was aware. I suppose I could do a SAR to them if I really need to... But unless some one actually comes knocking on my door about it... Letters will simply be binned and they can't add a 10+yr old debt to credit reference agencies... can they?

The last time I had to visit one was just over 3yrs ago when I bought my current car... So I have no idea.... so went googling and found this https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/250142/INF259_151013.pdf Which tells you that all 39 local DVLA offices would be closed by Dec 2013... No doubt as part of the austerity measures that are screwing everyone who's not rich... and I wish I was joking. I had no idea they were closing them... So it must have to be dealt with at the post office now.

Yeah I have to do that to get the car taxed, I have a letter from the DWP to state that the car is tax exempt... But as far as I am aware, you still have to go to a licensing office to reclassify the vehicle as disabled. It seems crazy that as it stands... it appears that you have to tax the car before you drive it home... then reclassify it as tax exempt and recover the refund... minus one month as they don't refund partial months. Before, I was able to drive the car home as it stood and reclassify it for disabled use and they would simply give me the VED disc there and then.... Now I don't know.

I know it's been over a year since I last commented on this thread.. . In the end I haven't done anything further about it. I never received another letter from any DCA regarding it and I never responded to them acknowledging anything. I've not pursued the Admin Order any further either as it's simply their word against mine that it was paid.. . and I am 100% certain that it was as a remember leaving the office after meeting with the judge/magistrate to discuss it, walking downstairs in the courts and going straight to the payment counter to pay it. .. It was one of the reasons why the judge granted it because I was going to pay immediately. If I ever get another one, it will go right in the bin.. . if they take me to court I can counter with the whole statute barred argument and contact the courts with an SAR.

Hi all Got an interesting question that I've not been able to find a definitive answer too. My dad is disabled and gets the full motability allowance, but is no longer allowed to drive. So for the past 3 years as I bought a car specifically large enough to take him and my mother (both are also elderly) out and about... We were able to nominate my car for use as a disabled vehicle. This means it's been transferred to disabled use and we are exempt from VED. But at some point in the next 12 months, I will need to change the car as it's getting on a bit and starting to cost more than it's worth in repairs. I paid £2100 for it and so far have spent £1800 in repairs and maintenance. Since the cat tax rules changed... when you buy a car it is the new owners responsibility to tax it. But I can't find out how that applies to vehicles that need to be re-registered as disabled use. because that involves going to a main DVLA licensing office (nearest one to me is about 25 miles away) to make the change and have the new VED applied. Given that I will need to bring any car I purchase home or direct to the DVLA offices... I won't be covered and I can't make the change to disabled use until I purchase the car. So it means being in limbo until such a time as it can be done... and depending on where the car is located could involve much more expense to me if I had to go there, buy the car, come home and go to the local licensing office and then make my way back to pick up the car. Not to mention changing over insurance and so forth. It's very unlikely I will be buying from a car dealer. I just need to know if I have any leeway in getting the car home after purchase and getting it reclassified as disabled.