JSA sanction, Seetec

[EmilyPink]

Hi all,

 

In the afternoon of 10th September 2013 I received a letter from Seetec dated 04 September 2013 but sent by recorded delivery on 09 September 2013 requested that I go to a 'mandatory activity' at certain on 10th September 2013 : I then called the phone number that was one the letter that they are doing a mistake since I have just received the letter the afternoon of the day I should start their mandatory work (despite of the fact I dispute with job centre how I have been selected for this program). However, Seetec did not want to listen to anything : I then sent an explanation email to my jobCentre adviser with a scan of the envelope (stamped on 09th September) containing the letter. The next day, 11th September 2013 I call Seetec to inform them that I am going to the appointed mandatory work but before this I will have to go to JobCentre for the transport since I did not have enough money for this last : the Seetec operator with a very aggressive way tone interrupted me and say that I do not to attend this mandatory work anymore since "it has been cancelled because I failed to attempt the first day". I than once again informed JobCentre about this knowing that it is problem them who is instructing Seetec to act in this way.

 

Today, I have received a later from 'Annesley LM DMA Sector Office' saying this : "We have been told that on 04th September 2013 you were notified to attend Mandatory Work Activity at xxxxxxxx on 10th September 2013 but that you failed to do so.

 

Will you please repy in writing overleaf within 7 days of the date of this letter to explain why you did not undertake this activity. You should note that unless you can provide a good reason for not undertaking this activity, your benefit may be affected."

 

In addition to have received Seetec letter only on 10th September 2013, due to housing issues (harassment by neighbour) I had a court hearing on 6th September 2013 and 9th September 2013 and for this purpose I had an appointment on 04th September 2013 with a solicitor : all these information were provided to JobCentre but it does not seem to be 'good reasons' for them.

 

I have tried to make a complaint against Seetec in vain (the hang up the phone on me) and seriously planning to make a complaint against them for harassment and misleading at the county court if I am sanctioned based on their wrong statement.

 

Thanks in advance for your help,

 

PS : Without my JSA I will totally be without income.

Edited September 20, 2013 by EmilyPink

[honeybee13]

Hello there.

 

Did you reply in writing, as they asked?

 

My best, HB

[EmilyPink]

Hello there.

 

Did you reply in writing, as they asked?

 

My best, HB

Hello, I just done that yesterday.

[Mr.P]

If you enter the 13 digit number on the "Signed For" label in to http://www.royalmail.com/track-trace it should display the date & time the letter was delivered. Do a screenshot of the information and save the file somewhere safe. If the benefit doubt turns in to a sanction, you will have an opportunity to appeal. Enclose a printout of the screenshot, a photocopy of the envelope the M.A.N. arrived in, and point out that fails to meet the guidelines given in the DWP Provider Guidance, Chapter 3a.

Timing of sending the MAN

36. Ensure that the timeframe between issuing the notification and the taking

part in the activity is reasonable.

37. If the MAN is posted, it is taken to have been received on the second

working day after posting (not including Saturday or Sunday or bank

holidays).

38. For example: If an activity was due to start on the Tuesday at 9am, it

would be advisable to send the MAN on the preceding Tuesday. It could

then be assumed to have been received in good time, it would be unlikely

that the participant could provide good cause for non-participation due to

not receiving the MAN in good time.

Posting of a M.A.N. dated the 4th out on the 9th with the expectation that it would arrive on the day the activity is due to commence demonstrates gross incompetence on the part of Seetec. Whilst Royal Mail aims to deliver 93% of first class post within one working day, it does not guarantee what time of day the delivery will be made.

 

Complaints about specific providers should be addressed to:

Head of Work Programmes

Department for Work and Pensions

Level 4

Steel City House

56 West Street

Sheffield

S1 2GQ

 

And marked for the attention of Derek French and/or Clare Elliot - Also send a copy to your local MP and if he/she is any good, some pointed questions will filter down from the head of the DWP.

[EmilyPink]

If you enter the 13 digit number on the "Signed For" label in to it should display the date & time the letter was delivered. Do a screenshot of the information and save the file somewhere safe. If the benefit doubt turns in to a sanction, you will have an opportunity to appeal. Enclose a printout of the screenshot, a photocopy of the envelope the M.A.N. arrived in, and point out that fails to meet the guidelines given in the DWP Provider Guidance.

 

Posting of a M.A.N. dated the 4th out on the 9th with the expectation that it would arrive on the day the activity is due to commence demonstrates gross incompetence on the part of Seetec. Whilst Royal Mail aims to deliver 93% of first class post within one working day, it does not guarantee what time of day the delivery will be made.

 

Complaints about specific providers should be addressed to:

Head of Work Programmes

Department for Work and Pensions

Level 4

Steel City House

56 West Street

Sheffield

S1 2GQ

 

And marked for the attention of Derek French and/or Clare Elliot - Also send a copy to your local MP and if he/she is any good, some pointed questions will filter down from the head of the DWP.

 

Normally I should have received my JSA today but NO : apparently JobCentre has sanctioned me but I have not received any letter saying this [instead, I have received a letter from JobCentre dated 18 September 2013 saying that my JSA has been allowed (maybe they do this every six months or just another misleading...)] .

 

I do not trust the people you provided above and as a result I prefer to directly file a claim against Seetec by next Monday.

[EmilyPink]

I have just received the confirmation from JobCentre that it is due Seetec referral to a 'decision maker'.

[san_d]

I have just received the confirmation from JobCentre that it is due Seetec referral to a 'decision maker'.

This cannot be right. A referral cannot be done by the contractor but by the Jobcentre only, as long as I know.

[EmilyPink]

This cannot be right. A referral cannot be done by the contractor but by the Jobcentre only, as long as I know.

The adviser [who is equally involved in my harassment (I have made a complaint against her and her manager a month and it seems that they are doing a kind of victimisation)] told me orally this afternoon that my housing benefit has been suspended by 'decision maker'.

 

I really want to make a complaint at the county court against both Seetec and this JobCenter employee (it useless to make a complaint internally or to Ombudsman since they protect them by doing negation).

[EmilyPink]

If you enter the 13 digit number on the "Signed For" label in to http://www.royalmail.com/track-trace it should display the date & time the letter was delivered. Do a screenshot of the information and save the file somewhere safe. If the benefit doubt turns in to a sanction, you will have an opportunity to appeal. Enclose a printout of the screenshot, a photocopy of the envelope the M.A.N. arrived in, and point out that fails to meet the guidelines given in the DWP Provider Guidance, Chapter 3a.

 

For your information I went to JobCentre this afternoon in order to make an appeal and claim for JSA under hardship but I forgot to take a copy of the envelope since I had previously sent to my adviser : when I was filing the form I asked my adviser to print a copy of the envelope for me but she refused claiming any of the printer in JobCentre were working. She did the same for the royamail track : i really want to sue these JobCentre at the County Court so that every could see how much they are wicked.

[EmilyPink]

Hi all,

I have made an hardship claim on last Friday 27 September 2013 but the jobcentre adviser told me that because we were close to 5pm she could not proceed to my claim. However she did not gave me any date for response until present.

 

Also, I would like to know when I should normally expect a response (especially since I have medical conditions)?

 

Thanks in advance for your help,

 

Emily

[citizenB]

I think this one needs to be in Benefits.

[citizenB]

There were two threads in different forums - I have merged

[EmilyPink]

The adviser [who is equally involved in my harassment (I have made a complaint against her and her manager a month and it seems that they are doing a kind of victimisation)] told me orally this afternoon that my housing benefit has been suspended by 'decision maker'.

 

I really want to make a complaint at the county court against both Seetec and this JobCenter employee (it useless to make a complaint internally or to Ombudsman since they protect them by doing negation).

 

I believe I have made a confusion between the independant decision maker service and the ombudman. At the moment, JobCentre consider my complaint only at level 3 so if I wanted to go to the next step it will be the independent decision maker but the response of this last can take at least one month or two 9according to JobCentre).

[EmilyPink]

Hi all,

I have made an hardship claim on last Friday 27 September 2013 but the jobcentre adviser told me that because we were close to 5pm she could not proceed to my claim. However she did not gave me any date for response until present.

 

Also, I would like to know when I should normally expect a response (especially since I have medical conditions)?

 

Thanks in advance for your help,

 

Emily

 

For your information, until present I still not have received jsa for hardship and they have declined my appeal against the sanction but still refuse to provide any explanation. Now, my jobcentre has given me a GL24 form saying that it is for further appeal but I am confused about this process.

[Gay_guy1986]

For your information, until present I still not have received jsa for hardship and they have declined my appeal against the sanction but still refuse to provide any explanation. Now, my jobcentre has given me a GL24 form saying that it is for further appeal but I am confused about this process.

 

Why you talking to yourself?

[bedofweeds]

Why you talking to yourself?

 

Maybe it is all part of the OP's illness??

[Mr.P]

they have declined my appeal against the sanction but still refuse to provide any explanation. Now, my jobcentre has given me a GL24 form saying that it is for further appeal but I am confused about this process.

 

Did you print out a screenshot from Royal Mail of the "proof of delivery" for your M.A.N. that was delivered on the 10th Sept ?

The fact that the letter was not posted "in good time" and consequently arrived too late should have been good grounds for the original sanction decision to be overturned. If the DWP are ignoring the evidence presented, I would recommend you take all the paperwork along to your local Citizens Advice Bureau. They should be able to help you fill in the GL24 appeal form with a watertight case.

[bedofweeds]

Did you print out a screenshot from Royal Mail of the "proof of delivery" for your M.A.N. that was delivered on the 10th Sept ?

The fact that the letter was not posted "in good time" and consequently arrived too late should have been good grounds for the original sanction decision to be overturned. If the DWP are ignoring the evidence presented, I would recommend you take all the paperwork along to your local Citizens Advice Bureau. They should be able to help you fill in the GL24 appeal form with a watertight case.

 

There is no such thing as a 'water tight case'. Well not where the DWP are concerned. I have had so called 'water tight' cases in the past only to find out that the DWP do have a habit of (a) cherry picking the evidence that best suits their case and (b) attempting to discredit the claimant's evidence by any means fair or foul. I even had one case where a benefit was suspended and then terminated as from the date of suspension, yet attempted to put a different spin on the Tribunal's judgement to suggest that the termination was meant to apply from the date of the original decision some three years earlier. It was only when I pointed them towards the relevant regulations that they back tracked.

[EmilyPink]

Did you print out a screenshot from Royal Mail of the "proof of delivery" for your M.A.N. that was delivered on the 10th Sept ?

Assuming that my adviser had printed out as at the end that was agreed with her (the appeal was provided to her), yes I print out a screenshot from Royal Mail of the "proof of delivery". Later, I sent an email report confirming all these documents (scan of the appeal form that I made in the JobCentre with my mobile,etc) that was provided to my adviser and she agreed to print out a screenshot from Royal Mail of the "proof of delivery" and add this last to my appeal form provided to her.

The fact that the letter was not posted "in good time" and consequently arrived too late should have been good grounds for the original sanction decision to be overturned. If the DWP are ignoring the evidence presented, I would recommend you take all the paperwork along to your local Citizens Advice Bureau. They should be able to help you fill in the GL24 appeal form with a watertight case.

I went to my local Citizens Advice Bureau and they gave me an appointment only in a month so it will be too late : I will also have to fill the GL24 form by myself. My adviser wanted me to bring the GL24 form to her but I am finding this a bit suspicious so I prefer to try to send it by special delivery as soon as possible.