Help please advice needed. Just purchased a terraced property that had a crack running down the inside of the bathroom wall. Big enough to be able to see into next doors bathroom who has the same crack. Crack is about the width of a side on 50 pence piece. Same distance from top to bottom. Nothing noted on home buyers survey, 2 builders looked at it prior to purchase and said its not tied in properly, quotes given and purchase went ahead with the vendors making a capital allowance on the purchase price for the builders quotes. Now plaster off and bath out it looks like subsidence caused by next doors soakaway. next door is owned by a housing association. They are aware of the crack in their own property and have chosen to ignored it telling the neighbour to just fill it. How do I go about getting this repaired and getting the housing association on side as they have seemed very uninterested according to the neighbour. Thanks in advance

I have appealed but they say no too bad you owe it. I cant afford 1/3rd of my money gone is this allowed even I hear of people paying £2 a week to clear debts that would need to be 150 years old to clear yet the greedy bas%$@ds want to leave me with about £60 a week to live on, thanks for the replies the overpayment was they say because i never told them that a benefit I was receiving had gone up and so another benefit was overpaying me. I said that as its all one department then they should have known what they were paying me. The best bit is this isnt even my debt its my ex partners who I was foolish enough to have been an appointee for because he had mental health issues.

Please can you help, I get £82.50 fortnightly IS and £41.44 weekly carers allowance. I am already paying £20 a week off of the carers allowance for an overpayment that was the DWP's error even with proof they were informed of a change of circumstances they refuse to accept the error is theirs. Now I get a letter saying they are going to also be taking £101.32 every 4 weeks. I already have a rent and council tax shortfall I have no TV, fridge, or washing machine as I dare not spend any of my £1,000 savings as they have already accused me of wasting my savings on my dogs vet bills! Can they take 1/3rd of your money just like that, I never had a letter asking me for my outgoings to work anything out. I am sick to death of trying to deal with these people, no wonder people commit suicide being pushed to breaking point all the time. Please advise asap as these deductions are happening on the 22nd of July and I only got the letter yesterday

Thanks Buddy, its a bloody night mare I dont need while he is recovering in hospital. Chris' wife

The latest is they have sent Debt Recovery Plus Ltd. Hubby has been in hospital since December 2012 so I have written and told them this. Will have to see if they choose to carry on as I have informed them I will get a representative to go to County Court if thats the route they choose. Legal thieves they are ba^*£^ds. Chris' wife

Thanks Buddy Off for a read now Chris

Thanks for all the replies but just wondering why the 35 day limit hoohoo? I always thought 28 days was a good time limit. I need educating! Thanks again Chris

Exactly, I felt like writing to each and every one of the stores and explaining that we will no longer be able to be their customers due to the parking restrictions. After all this is near a B&Q a large Tesco a Homebase and various large furniture shops all affording masses of customer parking so if she wanted to pop into the town centre and use a car park for free it would not have been the one she did use. Still if any one can clarify this new legislation I will happily stick two fingers up but not if its likely to come back and bite my backside. Chris

Please advise. My wife went Christmas shopping to a shopping centre that has in excess of 15 retail units a few weeks ago. Today I have had a Parking Charge Notice from Parking eye to say my car was there for almost 5 hours! Only 3 hours is permited free. 5 hours shopping would kill me but my wife claims happily its really not that difficult to do any time but especially while Christmas shopping. I guess so, as she visited 6 of the shops and stopped for coffee and a chat to a friend she met there. She has receipts for 3 of the shops but not the other 3. So having read many posts saying ignore them I am concerned about this keepers liability and how best to respond if at all and what teeth does the new legislation of October 2012 give these thieves? Thanks Chris.

Sorry I am confusing everyone as well as myself! Please dont post as I just seem to be winding people up and getting things wrong. I am in fear of hubby going back into the pshyciatric unit as he seems to be lapsing back into the severe depression I have worked 3 years on weaning him off the personality altering drugs that he has been on for 10 plus years. Sorry again to keep getting things wrong and confusing people. I guess it looks like I am making it up as I am not consistant. The worry of it all is not helping Thanks again for the positive comments

They are saying my husband was not ill at all and that we have been working. As you say the truth will out once they get investigating! I only really wanted to know how long they can withhold items from me that they have said on numerous occassions that I can have back after they have photocopied. Thanks everyone for the comments,

I got the overpayment letter in june or july 2010, we were arrested in July 2011. I have been paying the overpayment back at £100 a month even though I believe it is their error not mine that caused the overpayment in the first place. I really just wanted to know how long they can keep your personal item while they are obviously investigating if to take us to court or not? Thanks

My partner and myself are being investigated for benefit fraud. We came off benefits as my partner started work in November 2010. My solicitor advised we did not attend any interviews under caution. I wrote to the DWP saying that this was the reason for not attending. I gave them my solicitors details who told them that he never advised clients to attend as they often did more harm than good. Next thing at 6.45 this July 2011, police and DWP turn up and arrest us, search our home and take us into custody. No comment was given to all questions after having our business yard searched and we were relieased, free to go with no charge. The questions were bizare and shocking! They believed my partner was never ill! I asked the DWP interviewing officer when can I have our passports, diarys and address books back. He said within the week. Some 6 weeks later they will not return anything. My solicitors firm have asked and get fobbed off. Books and receipts relating to my partners new business have been taken and he is unable to give these to his accountant for this years tax. What is a reasonable amount of time for them to 'photocopy' items and return them? My partner suffered depression for years. I have worked very hard at helping him with weaning him off of personality changing drugs as his doctors were useless and gave me the blanket patient confidentiality blurb when I asked for help. I can see my partners health declining! He is becoming ill again with no interest in his self employed work, he is loosing interest in his day to day existence and I am fearful he will go back into the phsyciatric unit. Please advise regarding the witholding of our things if you can. I did jokingly say to one of the solicitors partners that I will have to apply for an new passport as I use it for ID and she said that was probably a good idea! I cant believe they can keep things for so long when we have not been charged, cautioned or bailed! Thankyou

Thanks for the replies, sorry I should have said what the benefits where. Since 1999 we have been on DLA, incapacity, carers allowence, income support, housing and council tax benefits. The DWP wrote and asked for it back. We have been on those benefits all this time, nothing changed and suddenly June 2010 the letter came out of the blue. I questioned that surely they knew what we were claiming for but they just listed the overpayment and said it was for 6 years worth. Thanks again

I have had a letter asking for over 4k overpayment to be paid back. I wrote and asked how this had occured as myself and partner had been on the same benefits for over 10 years. They claimed that a benefit department had not informed them that a benefit had increased and so they did not deduct it from another benefit. They claim I should have informed them as they obviously cant speak to one another. They took a couple of small payments from our benefits before our circumstances changed and we stopped claiming in November 2010. Last week I have had a letter asking for us to repay the overpayment. Now I feel that as the error was theres I really don't think I am responsible for the mistake and really begrudge paying it back just as we have got on our feet with work. Where do we stand legally regarding payment? Had the error been mine I had lied to them I expect to put my hands up and pay it back no question. Surely I cant be expected to know the legality of who to inform of what benefit increases when and where etc etc. Advice please and sorry if this has been done before I searched for an answer but was unable to find one. Thanks in advance

Thanks Yourbank, I did inform the bank the day she died. They put a freeze on the account and informed me that direct debits would just be returned with no explanation. Only cheques would say deceased on them. I want to make sure that any money overpaid comes back to her estate and wasnt sure the best way to word it. I guess just to state the facts and ask that final bills be sent to me. Cheers again Cob

Basically how do I word it? What do I need to say? The lady that died paid everything on direct debit. So chances are she is in credit. Thanks in advance Cob