Can anybody help please! Last year I went to stay with ,y mom for a few months whilst my house was being renovated. I informed hmrc of the change of address. When I did my renewal this year for tax credits, they had my original address on file still, but my correspondence went to my moms address. My mom returned the post to sender without my knowledge, otherwise I wouldve known that there was a mistake. Anyway last week I noticed my child benefit hadnt gone into my bank (i have it paid weekly) So I called them and was told that another dept had informed them that they had returned post, I presumed that mustve been tax credits, and my payments had been suspended, I explained the situation. Anyway I called Tax credits straight away and they said yes those payments had too been suspended, but as I had called and given my original addres those paayment would be reinsated. True to their word my Tax credits went in my vbank on the due day. But still no child benefit has been paid in. Does anybody know how long that takes to be reinstated and why one dept can get it reinstated straight away, but he other cant? I called today and the woman at the child benefit office was very abrupt and said there is no time scale and it had been sent to head office. My daughter is 12 years old so its not like shes nearly 16 or anything!!

Hi All, Im hoping someone on here can help me. Housing benefit have cut my benefit by £50 per week because they say they have over paid me by nearly £700. Now I am angry about this for a number of reasons: 1) they miscalculated my claim, I always notify them of changes to my circumstances immediately and they had all the correct information to work out my claim, they say they over paid me due to cuts in childcare costs, I notified them of these changes last September. 2) this is about the 4th time that they have done his to me in as many years 3) while it probably wont place me in financial hardship it is definitely going to impact on my quality of life and I've signed up to things that I wouldn't have if I had known this was going to happen,. i.e. a new sofa and sky. I am going to write them saying it is not fair that they reclaim this money as they had all the necessary information to calculate my claim correctly, i am also going to write a stage one complaint about the frequency of which they have miscalculated my claim. I just wanted to know if there was any case law or something that could quote, I'm so tired of them doing this to me. Any help would be appreciated. Sabby

Hello All, I attended my ESA tribunal. I thought I explained myself really well to the two judges really well why I was unable to work. Unfortunately however, I lost the tribunal and my ESA was stopped from the 3rd of October. Now, I don't know what to do... I don't want to claim JSA because I have a severe form of scoliosis and I think working will do me more harm than good. On the other hand... If I make a new appeal to claim ESA I feel like I'm playing the system a little bit and what are the chances of me winning the tribunal if I failed before? I have contacted the CAB and have arranged a meeting in two weeks time. But because I'm not getting any income at the moment I have to decide before the two weeks. So, right now I'm debating what to do. Questions....(1) Would I be eligible to make a new claim for ESA my WCA was in September of last year? (2). How long does it take to receive your first payments of either the ESA or JSA? I have anyone has been in a similar situation I would appreciate it your advice!

hi everyone, I will try to explain my situation as simple as I can, apologise if the story is too long... first, a year and a half ago I moved home and forgot to tell hmrc straight away, I was remindeed by the tx credits renewal packs that were sent out to my friends and gave them a call straight away and explained the situation. At the time the advisor was very understanding and we did the changes over the phone. I asked her if I needed to call child benefit as well and she told me NO, records would be updated for both offices. Since then I have been getting letters from hmrc normally, child tax credits and child trust fund as well. I never thought to doubt for a moment that all was all right. However, last month I accidntally noticed my child benefit payments had stopped. I rarely go out looking for the payments unless there is a problem, have all my bills on direct debit etc, so pay little attention to my bank statement. turns out the last payment was on the 29th of may 2012. I first contacted the office online as getting through the phone was taking ages. Few days later I got an email from them telling me my payments had been stopped due to a letter that I did not respond to and Id have to start a new claim. not happy with that short response I emailed back but never got any more contact. so yesterday I called the office. the advisor asked for my details to confirm my identity, there and then he assured me he had my correct address in hands, the present one. So I briefly told him my story, he kept in silence as I talked and when I finished only told me "well there is nothing else you can do apart from starting a new claim". I asked to be informed of when they sent me any correspondence as for what i can see they have my correct adress so it all sounds like a mistake to me. he said he cant tell me when because the letter could have been sent from any hmrc office, to wich i replied thats impossible, I had ust gotten ff thephone with tax credits office to make sure all was right there. he told me many things could have happened including a mistake from the post man. I said "what????" he said, yes, you never know the postman could have dropped your letters in another house, I said then how does that make the whole thing my fault? and how many letter were sent out until ending on my benefit being stopped that the postman delivered wrong? The advisor kept telling me in a ery rude mannner that hes wasnt saying it was no one fault but that there was nothing else he could do, trying to get me off the phone. I insisted for an explanation though. I asked him for a bit of understanding from his side to my question... how is it if they have my present adress my benefit could have been stopped over lack of response from my part???? if I never got any letters from them? he advisors, shckingly, asked me how did I know I did not ge any letters? I said to him he must have been joking there, because, obviously, I live in this house and get all the letter, and there wasnt one from child benefits. He went on to say about postman mistake and taht perhaps the offices were late on communicating the address change between them but there was no way we could know what happened. i asked further questions, like, if the office does not keep records of all mail sent out or when the address change in his system took place, that sure would have been recorded, to all he replied he did not know the information and few times told me "i dont understand what you want from me". Leaving aside the poor tratment I got over the phone yesterday, I also did not get an answer to my problem. I told him I believe my payments shoud be backdated to when they stopped because this was clearly a "postman mistake" or miscommunication within the department, wich is a bit strange since at the end of the day, they were communicated of my new address and got all my information correctly. Overall, I told him, there is no explanation or reason of why my payments woud have been stopped, and he could not tell me more than I did not reply to mail sent out to me. wich I believe is no good enough excuse, since they have my present address and sure would have taken more than one lettter missed for the to stop it all together, so its also hard to believe the "postman mistake" theory. after about half an hour on the phone with the man, I told him I would not get off the phone until he would give me more than "nothing else I can do", because I cant accept this type of treatment and unfair decision, he told me in a very spiteful manner he had already told me wha to do minutes ago, wich he had not, and he would pass my complaint to head office. I was shocked, never before I had seen such rudeness and lack of empathy from a HMRC advisor on the phone, any other call I had made before was spotlessly dealt with and politeness and professionalism always there, not to fault!!! I do not know what to do next and how to act. Another hour call like that and another advisor playing like that to me on the phone, its very frustrating any help will be very much appreciated!!

http://www.housing.org.uk/policy/welfare-reform/universal-credit/direct-payments-to-tenants At present the claimant came opt for the HB to be paid direct to the Landlord. With the changes in October 2013 this will no longer be an option as HB will be paid direct to the claimant. It is then the claimants responsibility to pay the landlord the rent due. Rent is a priority payment

I have just received my award letter from the DWP and I have been automatically placed into the support group of ESA on contributions based. I was swapped over from Incapacity Benefit. I am slightly confused over my award. It says that I will get £71 per week, plus the support group payment of £34 on top. However, when I checked the benefit rates, it says that I should have been awarded £14.80 also extra for an enhanced disability premium, but there is no mention of this on my letter. Do I contact DWP over this? Confused.

Here's the situation. I'm a 65 year old male living with my 56 year old partner. We have a 17 year old daughter. I've just had a letter to attend an interview under caution. My partner inherited about £40,000 from her father in July. We both lead practically separate lives now and although I live in the same house a nd claim for us I don't have much to do with anybody, keeping myself to myself and rarely going out. (I have diabetes, heart problems and depression). I didn't see much of the money although she did buy me a new laptop. the money was frittered away in the space of about two months, mostly on debt and huge mortgage arrears. There's nothing left now. The thing is I stupidly didn't declare it and as the claim is in my name I should have done. I kept meaning to but I'm terrible for putting things off. I realized that the DWP must have known about the inheritance. No attempt was made to hide the money. I don't have a bank account but it sat openly in my partner's account while it lasted. Now I have to attend this interview and I'm pretty scared. How likely am I to face jail time? It's the government statements on cracking down hard on fraud that terrify me. I can't believe I've been so stupid. I know a forum can't solve my problems but it helps a little just to talk about it.

Hi I was wondering if someone could help me. I have to attend an interview for benefit fraud, apparently they have been asking for weeks, i received nothing but what i did receive was a bill of £2300 approx which they say i owed because i was working whilst receiving jobseekers and have already started paying this back. the woman on the phone today told me if i do not attend for interview they will pass my case on to the prosecution service, is this possible considering i have already been found guilty or else i wouldn't be paying this amount back? Any help would be massively appreciated

Hi, I claimed ESA© but was told did not qualify (not enough contributions) I am still employed not in receipt of any pay, my OH claiming Jobseekers allowance, been getting Housing Benefit and Council tax benefit, then out the blue ESA© suddenly decided I was entitled to be paid?, I had discontinued claim (another story), I telephoned ESA , was advised to sit tight by the adviser and wait for over payment notifications where applicable, said shouldn't have to pay back jobseekers (income based) as it was there fault that as caused the over payment, but I am concerned about the Housing Benefit side, should I wait until they contact us? or should I wait until the DWP make contact first regarding over payment? either way it will be a struggle to pay it back at present, as the ESA was paid into bank account with overdraft which has eaten the money up. 2nd question, I will be getting a private pension later this year, and it doesn't look like I will be returning to work, I know the pension will be taken as earnings, but would we still be eligible for Housing etc if I am not actually working (I am not at the official pension age) OH still unemployed thanks

Hi, was just looking for some advice on benefit fraud really Brief history is my ex partner and me were living together 2009, she was claiming full benefit without my knowledge. Social invited both of us to interviews after we split, around 2011. She was charged with fraud at £30k whilst I received letter saying no further action I found out I wasn't named on the council property despite being told I was by her She is not happy regarding this and is now threatening to try and claim I knew all along and claims she has evidence to,prove this although I have no idea what as in my eyes she is talking rubbish. What I'm wondering is since the case has been heard and charges brought forward against her is this threat anything to worry about? I just don't want the hassle and grief and animosity this could cause. Can they bring a fresh case against me based on her word? Is this time restricted? We have two kids together and I pay fully for them but she won't let things lie and expects me to pay through the nose for everything in her life whilst she chooses not to work. Any help to put my mind at rest would be greatly appreciated, I suffer with depression as a result of all I've been through the last few years with her and I don't want this pushing me back down that slope as I'm just picking myself up

Taken from this link from Scottish Express: http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/428437/Brothers-win-blows-a-hole-in-bedroom-tax-benefit-cuts In a ruling that could open the floodgates for thousands to challenge the under-occupancy legislation, a tribunal found that David Nelson’s spare room was too small to be a bedroom. And his brother Ian successfully argued that his “spare” room should be turned into a wet room because he struggles to get in and out of the bath. Around 660,000 social housing tenants across the country have seen their housing benefit reduced by an average of £14 per week because they have an unused bedroom. The disabled, foster carers and those with children in the armed forces are exempt from the rules. David, 57, from Glenrothes, Fife, argued that his spare room was too small to be taxed. He said that at just 50 square feet, the room could not be classed as a bedroom but is a box room. Ian, who only has one leg, successfully argued that his “spare” room should be turned into a wet room because he struggles to get into a bath. At an independent tribunal held in Kirkcaldy, Simon Collins QC ruled that neither brother should have their housing benefits cut as their rooms should be exempt. Mr Collins, a first tier tribunal judge, ruled that a room under 50 square feet is not a bedroom and a room measuring between 50 and 70 square feet is only suitable for children under 10. The ruling is expected to spark a deluge of appeals from the 75,000 people in Scotland said to be affected by the benefits cut.

During the summer 2013 a limit will be introduced to the total amount of benefit (including Housing Benefit) that an out-of-work household can claim. This is so that no family who are out of work will receive more in benefit payments that the average wage paid to people in work. If your benefits are above this limit your Housing Benefit will be reduced to the amount you are above the cap From April 2016 the benefit cap will be reduced. New amounts are: Single parents and couples with children: £385 Single adults, no children: £258 For those in London, the amounts are £442 and £296 respectively This cap will apply to the combined income from a number of different benefits and tax credits including Jobseekers Allowance Income Support Employment and Support Allowance (unless in the support group) Child Benefit Child Tax Credit Housing Benefit The cap will not include one-off payments, non-cash benefits and things like free school meals, nor will it include Council Tax Reduction Scheme. As before, it will be applied to the UC monthly amount or as a reduction in HB. The UC childcare component will not count towards the cap. People not in receipt of HB or a UC housing component will not receive sufficient benefits to be affected. The following will not be affected by the cap. All pensioners are exempt from the cap The cap won't apply if you receive any of the following benefits Working Tax Credit Disability Living Allowance or Personal Independence Payment Attendance Allowance Employment and Support Allowance if paid with the support component Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit War Widow/er's Pension If you lose your job (through no fault of your own) after a period of 12 months continuous work, the cap won't apply for nine months.

I'm very worried about a friend I trust and respect that has received a letter for an interview under caution for this coming Wednesday. My friend doesn't want friends or family to know what has happened and at this stage probably wouldn't be happy about me asking for advice, so out of respect I don’t want to give to much away about his identify. Sorry I hadn't intended for this to be a long post but thought I should give as much info about him as possible so you can better understand why I’m so worried.. I don’t know what benefit he is on, I don’t want to appear nosy by asking but I don’t think he knows because when we talked about it he said he’s not to sure because he also now gets a government retirement pension. If you didn't know him you would probably think he is being evasive. My friend phoned citizens advice but wasn't given any advice other than being directed to benefit fraud on the CAB website. From what I gather my friend got the distinct impression you have broken the law get on with it!. My friend “Who I will now call Fred" admits he would probably feel the same way.. Fred is in his 60s and did not deliberately set about to defraud anyone, truly its not in his nature, Fred was on benefits when a parent passed away and money was lodged into his bank account for himself & some for a third party to be given to that person in several years time when the beneficiary is older but Fred doesn't have any proof. Fred didn't think to notify work and pensions and cancel the benefit. He said it didn't register in his mind he completely forgot he was on benefit. He hasn't deliberately tried to hide anything but understands people won’t believe him & will judge him. Should Fred phone them now and ask for the benefit to be stopped today or wait for the interview?. Fred thinks he should because he is now aware he is not entitled to benefit. Fred would like to offer to pay back what he owes which would amount to approximately three years of overpayment. Fred says the benefit officers will not believe him and expects the worse but he is prepared for it and would be better than the life he is living at the moment. “This is very unlike the Fred I knew a few years ago who would be prepared to give a fight. It is clear to see he has lost his way in life. Fred as had a very difficult time over the last several years because of deteriorating health and loosing family and friends etc.. My friend as become more and more distant and depressed over the last few years suffering with memory loss and being more and more vacant when you talk to him he is often on another planet and believes he has the same disease has the parent that passed away after years of terrible suffering. I think it was Alzheimer's or dementia?. . Fred looked after his parent for many years and witnessed lots of suffering. Fred has several major and perhaps life threatening health problems and because of circumstances and pain, as become addicted to very powerful prescribed medications. Fred seems to be in a never ending spiral where one day runs into the next. If you knew Fred as I do you would understand he would never deliberately break the law he is a Royalist and loves his country and its laws. I'm very worried about him because he will not go to a solicitor and believes know one will believe him so accepts what happens. “So unlike Fred.. Can someone make any suggestions?.. But firstly should he notify work & pensions before the interview and stop the claim?.. Perhaps I should try and give you all a rundown on how I see my friend; why I don’t think he should be alone on the interview. I won’t go into all the whys and wherefores we would be here all day!. My friend as helped me and many other people over the years he is so honest and kind you wouldn't find a better friend. I have been worried about him for some time now but it’s not always easy talking to a friend. Not so many years ago he would never be late for an appointment. We have mutual friends that are magistrates and I remember a few years ago over dinner people saying and agreeing how good a magistrate he would make. “Not any more he forgets things!. To give you an idea what he is like now, “Fred what time is it? Errr, “errr “Fred would look at you with a blank distant look as if I had asked a really difficult question. He sometimes forgets dates & times, He looks as if something is always on his mind often staring into space. You can explain the simplest thing and he won’t grasp it, he can get half way through a sentence & forgets what he was saying. He will jump at the slightest thing. He was always out and about; He used to be very well dressed. Fred doesn't have a partner I can approach and I don’t know his family well enough, in anycase he doesn't want to involve anyone so I’m at a loss as to how I can help. I would offer to go on the interview with him but I’m away all this week. Thanks to anyone that may give advice.

I failed to notify a change of circumstances in 2011. I had an IUC last December, and admitted what I had done. I was meant to be in court this Wednesday, but this morning received a letter saying it has been adjourned til the middle of September. Does anyone have any idea why it has been adjourned? I'm so stressed out with it, and have been for weeks now, I want to get it.over and done.with. I have a condition that causes too much pressure around my brain, and with the stress from this I have been really poorly, I don't know how I am going to cope for another month!

Hi all I work 24 hrs a week my partner is currently unemployed ,I claim working tax and child tax credits and get housing benefitI have a 14 yr old daughter,my son who turned 20 in june was in college until he got a job on may 13th,I informed the HB and all other relevant depts,as soon as he recieved his wage slips I sent them to the housing benefit dept,got receipts for them,some of them I even took into one of thier life centres,this is where the problem started. The person who took the information didnt take the correct wage down on the paperwork ,she wrote down the NET not the GROSS but they didnt inform me of this if I hadnt phoned to check the status of the claim I wouldnt have known anything,anyway i took the wage slips again and this time i made them take photocopies of the wages and send them to the correct dept. Because they didnt have the correct information they said they would automatically put him down at earning £999 A MONTH so I wasnt entitled to any help with the rent,when they recieved the wageslips again they worked it out and am now happy with the result BUT Due to my fluctuating wage I ended up with an overpayment of HB , we have come to an arrangement to pay this back, today I have recieved my first payment since 4th june,but it is only for this months rent I was told that the claim would be backdated and i would recieve the money ,which I have already paid to my landlord. I have phoned them today asking when will I get the backpay of housing benefit,only to be told that I wont that it has been taken off my overpayment debt. My question is since it was thier mistake and it has taken from may13th to now to sort out ,and I have had to use all my wage to pay rent,can they do this? surely if I need to claim housing benefit I am unable to pay full rent but that is what I have had to do. I am penniless ,my bills have been paid and my rent paid but I was depending on this back payment to get my daughters uniform,which I have explained to them on more than one occasion as was assured everytime that I would get the payment as soon as they sorted it out hope this makes sense and thanks in advance

Hi I have previously posted about a situation regarding a friend of mine. Husband on ESA (Assessment Phase) awaiting tribunal hearing. She has recently closed her business. She tried to sign on Jobseeker's but was told she would be added to her Husband's claim. It could well be she didn't have the relevant contributions as she paid Class 2 and Class 4. It is now some eight weeks since the DWP were informed about this but they are still only receiving her Husband's £71.70 a week ESA. Their only other income is approximately £62/£63 a week private pension. They have no savings. Can someone please advise is income of approximately £135.00 deemed enough to live on? They have applied for CTB but heard nothing back. They have returned all necessary forms. CT is £155.00 a month (12 months). They have a mortgage of in excess of £800 a month which is now in arrears as is their CT (both 1 month). Her husband has been informed that it could be approximately 4 months before he hears about a Tribunal Hearing. I have tried to look at information for them and it would appear that he is entitled to Pension Credit from January 2014. That said, it looks like changes may effect this from October 2013 as my friend is younger than he is and it appears they may then go off the youngest age. Sorry for rambling on - trying to help a friend in need. Thank you for any advice. VUB

Hi, firstly apologies if im posting in the wrong place. Ive received a letter as above from a debt recovery agency chasing a HB overpayment from 2002. im lucky to have a reasonably good income and ive never fallen behind on any debt whether it be my mortgage or credit cards etc. now im not disputing that this debt may have existed as the 2 month time period that it is referring to is around the time i had my son and times were much more difficult for me then. what concerns me is that 1, ive never had anything to tell me that this debt exists until now (11 yrs later) and 2, if i pay the money to Jacobs am i just lining the pockets of the recovery agency not actually paying the debt to the council? the letter itself is quite frightening. it advises me that they will take court action against me and that i will be liable for further court costs etc. finally ive got a good credit history and i really dont want it to be affected by something like this any advice will be welcome thanks

Just a quick one as i cant seem to find the answer! JSA due on monday but when will i get it as it is a bank holiday?

Hiya, I hope someone can help. I have been claiming housing benefit for a couple of years with no problem. I started a Social Work degree last September 2012 for which I was entitled to a NHS bursary. I had absolutely no idea I had to tell housing benefit about this. I got a letter in June saying they had been informed I was doing a degree and gave me a form to fill in. I did this promptly and sent in all bursary information. I was told i'd been overpayed by £1900 and I had to pay it back which was I agreed with. I was still entitled to some HB so it was going to be deducted form that. They then made a mistake and said I was no longer entitled to any HB and I had to start a payment plan for the overpayment. I spoke to them and I had to send in more info about my income and they put the over payment on hold untill a new decision was made. I am still awaiting the decision on whether I get HB, but I got a letter today saying I have to go to interview under caution for fraud as I did not inform them of the NHS bursary. I didn't inform them but I genuinely didn't realise I had too. I didn't realise it was classed as a 'wage' as its to help me study for my degree. I agree this in hindsight was very naïve of me. I'm terrified I will get a conviction as I will not be able to continue my degree and become a social worker. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Hi I am looking for some advice for a friend. Her Husband has been on ESA since January of this year. He is currently appealing his ATOS medical decision and is receiving the assessment phase rate. She has been self employed for almost twenty years but has had to close her business due to decline in work. She has paid all required NI contributions. She filled in an online claim for Jobseeker's Allowance and both of them had to attend for interview at their local Jobcentre. When they attended they were told that as her Husband has an existing claim for ESA that she would be added to that and was not required to sign on. She has since been told that a household cannot claim two contribution based benefits. It is two weeks since the interview and they have only received his usual ESA payment. They have a mortgage on their property and no savings. My friend is obviously very worried about their financial situation. She does have some sort of mortgage protection policy but this will only pay half her mortgage and only comes into force after three months. Could someone kindly advise whether this is the case - that she cannot claim Jobseekers in her own right or does this fact not really matter and it will even outself out. Her Husband is 61 years of age. Regards, VUP

Hi All Would be very grateful if someone can advise on the following: I share a flat with one other tenant who works full-time and receives no benefits - I receive WTC and in 2012/13 was awarded 50% Council Tax Benefit (Both our names are on the Council Tax bill). In July 2012 I received a letter telling me I would be receiving 100% CTB for the rest of the year. "Great!" I thought... Come May of this year I received a letter from CT saying I owed them backdated CT for 2012/13 to the tune of £600!! When I asked why they said someone had reviewed my claim in February and had consequently reduced my CTB to 50%. I had received nothing to tell me of this and immediately contacted my local benefits office by email to ask why they had changed the award and why they hadn't notified me. After 4 weeks with no reply I went down in person to speak to a benefits officer - after scrolling through the history he seemed unable to explain why they had readjusted the benefit but put a note on their system for the officer dealing with my claim to contact me. Again, I have heard nothing. Whilst he was going through the notes I noticed that at the time they sent the letter saying I was entitled to 100% benefit I was actually only receiving 50%. I have since spoken to the CT division again who have put a hold on the account for 2 weeks, and advised me to make an appeal against the benefits department. It seems someone has made an error, either by awarding me the wrong amount in the first place, or by sending a letter with the wrong amount. They also seem to be at fault for not letting me know in February when the claim was reviewed. I am not in a position to pay the bill and do not wish to receive a court summons. If anyone can advise me of my rights and/or how to proceed I would be very grateful. Many Thanks

Hi I have recently had an interview under caution as I am accused of ESA and HB benefit fraud. I claimed ESA for a around a year and HB for 5 months, the situation is, is that I was claiming HB and ESA as a student I didn't know I couldn't, me and my partner were struggling to pay the rent and someone told me as long as I wasn't a foreign student I could claim. I took this poor advice and did claim, initially I thought it was a joint claim with my partner but I was wrong it was all in mine. also I didn't realise I had to inform the ESA that my partner worked 30 hrs a week, it didn't occur to me as it was my ESA and not a joint claim. I really didn't mean to defraud the system I just didn't t think straight, I accept responsibility, I also suffer from bipolar and have serious mental health problems, the forms were just confusing and I must have answered a question wrong. I do have a solicitor. My worry is that I will go to prison, is this likely? I really scared!! Thanks

Hello there, I have deep concern in regards to the DWP and what they're claiming I owe them from my late fathers estate, he unfortunately passed away 2 years ago of Motor Neurone Disease and left my mother with a few outstanding debts. We sold a property prior to his death and the money was transferred to me in advance due to the fact his ability to eat, drink, think and communicate deteriated rapidly and it came to a point he could barely type on an ipad to speak so therefore did the best he could in offering me the money they had prior to his death. Upon his death, I used the money to pay off existing debts outstanding upto about £35,000.00, once the debts were paid I then invested their money into a property which I and my sister now pay the rest of the mortgage on to give my mother a roof over her head and the final yet small amount of funds available went to the solicitor for doing absolutely nothing yet charging for it. The DWP although two years since my dads death are saying there was a period he was overpaid pension credit and we now owe them £5800(ish) pounds. I have no doubt that we owe them this money because although he was dying and was entitled to pension credit, there was a point we had enough money to not claim the maximum amount entitled however due to ill health my father didn't change that and I wasn't aware that this would be the outcome. My question is, is it possible to pay back half the outstanding balance and call it a day or will they basically demand the money in anyway shape or form, they've told me via telephone that I have a month, unless I can't pay up I have two years in which they want a lump sum (based on bank statements) The thing is I'm not executor, I'm just trying to stop my mum from suffering anymore.

hi im very sorry but i dont know where i should post this thread. i need some help regarding housing benefit fraud. i have been asked to come in to give a statement. can somebody pls tell me where i should post regarding this? thanks

Is there a run-on payment of housing benefit after signing off due to obtaining work? How does that work if you start your job a week or so after the last regular payment?