Housing benefit woes

[Markb03]

Why are these people such idiots and why is it so hard for them to do there job?

 

Back in March on the 10th I lost my job. I was sacked. I told the benefits this straight away along with the letter from my company explaining this. I also explained that due to me losing my job that I had had to take my son out of nursery.

 

About 4 weeks later they wrote to me asking for my partners wage slips, our bank statements and tenancy agreement. I took all this is on the 17th April.

 

I am still waiting for a answer and now my rent was short for April.

 

The benefits had made a massive mistake and not put me as out of work. So for the past 2 months according to there records I have been in work.

 

I feel like exploding at them but that will do me no good. An emergency email was sent explaining this to them last week by there customer services and I should hear by today or tomorrow. Well just rang and nothing today.

 

I demanded to speak to a manager and got told it will be sorted by tomorrow but I am skeptical about them. This is not the first time they messed up my claim and last time It took 3 months to rectify.

 

Its Birmingham Council. Who would I make a complaint to as I am getting fed up now and I don't believe me calling there customer services everyday is getting me anywhere and is just getting me angry.

 

Cheers

[Markb03]

Cheers

[surprise]

Find out who the Chief Executive is, write a letter explaining all the details. Give them 14 days to resolve the matter or you will go to the Government Ombudsman. You do need to show that you have tried to be reasonable by sorting the problem out first before going to the Ombudsman. Also, by writing to the Chief Executive, although it gets passed on to the Benefits Team, it gets actioned quicker coming from that route.

[Markb03]

Still got nothing to tell me today. I now got to wait until tomorrow. They had put my partners details in as weekly and not monthly like it states on her wage slips. So they worked out she was earning £1200 a month instead of £400 a month.

 

This is getting me worked up so badly now. My rent is 2 weeks late already and it seems they are doing nothing to help me other then making me wait.

[nickismee80]

I have been in the sort of same situation with our housing muppets..

 

Put a claim in 4th Feb 08, got our first payment... 1st May 08!!! 3 months worth of rent!!

 

We were down the council office's twice a week, every week, as they kept loosing photocopies of our documents (bank statements, which i was not impressed with) kept putting our wages down wrong, we did receive a letter in april stating we are not entitled to benefits, they put our income 4 times what we are actually on.. god knows how.

 

I did complain, but i was told there is nothing that could be done, it was down to our assessor, so i complained about her.. i've heard nothing back.

 

I was paniking that my self and children were going to be homeless as our tenancy agreement ran out at the beginning of this month, couldn't sleep, jumped everytime someone knocked on the door as i thought it might be the LL.. all because the housing muppets couldn't do their jobs right.. Im just very lucky to have a very very understanding landlord, when i told him what was going on he said "money isn't everything".

 

If your LL does start to get a bit arsey.. ask him to ring the council, they might be able to let him know what is going on and that the money will be with him soon.

 

I hope you get this sorted soon.. it's not a nice situation to be in, and i can sympathise with what you must be going through.

[surprise]

I would now refer the matter to the obudsman at Coventry - also by law they have to put your claim into payment within 14 days of all information being received.

[surprise]

If you are contacting them again today it might be worth the mention that they have not conformed to guidelines, ie 14 days, if no action is taken today then you will have no alternative but to refer the matter to the Ombudsman at Coventry today. Might just do the job.

 

good luck

[Markb03]

No call back today. Just rang up and got told no supervisors in today and not got to wait until tomorrow.

 

Spoke to someone this morning who told me to ring back tonight at 6pm which I did only to be told he mis-informed me because he is a new starter. Been told I may need to eait up to 5 more days now.

 

I am have gone past angry now. I am just upset now. Its pulling me down getting lied to all the time and then my hopes being dashed

Edited May 14, 2008 by Markb03

[surprise]

I don't think you being firm enough. Phone them tomorrow first thing and tell them that they have two options that a Team Leader phones you by the end of the day with a satisfactory response and ask them why they are not adhering to Government Guidelines of 14 Days. Failing a response you will be phoning the Ombudsman at Coventry or alternatively you can say you're will be contacting your MP. Again HB do not like the involvement of MPs or the Ombudsman.