Concentrix loses HMRC contract from 2017

[BDaly]

Some time ago my partner and myself received a letter from HMRC stating that we were no longer entitled to claim working tax credit due to information from Concentrix, we had never heard of Concentrix at this point.

 

 

Apparently the information that was disallowing us from claiming was that on the forms submitted it states I worked just 5 hours per week last year 2015.

The forms we submitted did not state 5 hours / week but rather 30 plus hours per week,

 

 

concerned by this I got in touch with HMRC through the HMRC website online chat system and an employee at HMRC informed us that Concentrix in Belfast had made the alteration to the form

 

The action taken by Concentrix is clearly fraudulent, so that information has been passed on to the serious fraud office in London.

I spoke to a solicitor who said yes I did have a case and yes he would pursue that case when I could get the £200/hour fee he would charge for handleing the case,

 

 

sadly I do have that kind of money at this time mostly due to being off work with a serious gastric disorder, and as I am no longer entitled to work tax credit due to Concentrix fraudulent action

 

 

I am also no longer allowed free prescriptions which meant last week I had to go without medication as we could not afford to get the precription filled at that time.

 

The solicitor suggested I get a group of people together who have also been mis-treated by Concentrix in order to begin a class action lawsuit against them but I have no idea how to go about that currently so am looking around for advise on how I can either get enough people together to get that underway or alternatively find a kind wealthy person to support a private case.

 

If you think that Concentrix have mis-used information to make a case against you or outright changed information you sent them the number for the serious fraud office is... 02072397272.

 

The more people who kick up a fuss about this company and the methods they use then the sooner these issues can be dealt with properly and this company brought to rights.

Edited September 14, 2016 by antone
Toned down language

[antone]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-37356646

 

This is good news, albeit in a small way. The firm has caused an inordinate amount of grief in the last few years.

[Nystagmite]

Seems as though people are treated as guilty until proven otherwise. Read some of this on Facebook yesterday.

[unclebulgaria67]

The big problem is the reliance on computers producing accurate/useful data and stupid people not questioning it, before they start using it.

 

What is the saying, 'garbage in, garbage out'.

 

It has become like the Little Britain sketch ' Computer says NO and you don't want to argue with it, do you'.

 

There is a story in the Daily Mail today about Banks computers looking at spending activity and causing problems for people when they go on a shopping break in another city. Because the computers detect higher than normal usage away from an account holders home, they are declining some transactions because of possible fraudulent use. It will get to the stage, where you have to start telling your Bank of all trips away from home and not just holidays abroad.

[antone]

The Serious Fraud Office? Really? This is bad, yes, but I'm not sure it's really a job for the SFO and I'm really not sure that we want to be advocating wasting their time.

 

Of course, if Concentrix has falsified something (I wish I could say that they would never do such a thing, but sadly I don't believe that) then the obvious first course is to appeal the decision and then, perhaps, seek support for some sort of Class Action suit. Complaining about being unable to claim TC because of this, and proposing massively expensive litigation as a solution, is surely putting the cart before the horse.

 

Since you have HMRC admitting that they believe that their records are not correct, it should be straightforward to get the decision changed - it probably won't even have to go to an appeals tribunal.

 

I'm certainly supportive, in principle, of fighting against stuff like this, so I think you have done the right thing by talking to a solicitor. In the meantime, is your MP likely to be at all sympathetic?

[antone]

I've merged a couple of threads on the topic of Concentrix. I'm not at all sorry to see the back of them.

[BDaly]

I raised this with the SFO because I am one of many people mistreated by Concentrix

but really how many of the hundreds if not thousands of people mistreated by them were mistreated by illegally altering records or illegally abusing info they had no right to use/access.

 

 

Also HMRC I would assume have copys of the records/forms we sent to them,

the chap at HMRC clearly stated that the records were altered by Concentrix .

 

 

So I would assume that the record copys of HMRC still hold the correct information so their records would be right,

how else could he confidently state what he did unless he compared the HMRC copy of the form with the Concentrix copy of the form.

 

 

And again assumption on my part that I would not be the only single person in this who has had records altered to fit with the Concentrix view of how things should be.

 

Also I can not confirm the SFO are looking at it I simply passed on the details I have got over to them.

 

To appeal the decision through the Concentrix channels would just get this fraud swept under the carpet never to rear it's head as at the eleventh hour they would simply hold up their hands and claim a mistake was made and reinstate the work tax credit.

 

 

This way if it is more widespread than one individual form then hopefully it will be brought into the light of day for all to see.

Edited September 19, 2016 by antone
Toned down language

[antone]

BDaly, you'll notice that I've had to edit a couple of your posts - the only thing I've changed is the way you presented the company name of Concentrix. I'd ask that you respect this - I don't want to come across as defending that company, but we really have to be careful on CAG.

 

Anyhow, I'm most certainly not trying to dissuade you from taking this matter further, but I would point out that the matter of resolving your own Tax Credit problems and the matter of taking things further are not mutually exclusive. If you have been wrongly refused benefits, you're entitled to those benefits. If, as you contend, the refusal was actually fraudulent, nothing about having your benefit reinstated and backpaid precludes further action.

 

Finally, on the matter of whether or not this is the SFO's remit, well, I don't know. But this article does discuss what the SFO considers its remit to be. If you haven't already seen it, I hope you find it interesting.

[antone]

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/tax-credits-mother-joseph-rowntree-food-banks-concentrix-a7318896.html

 

Concentrix accuses woman of living with 19th century Quaker Joseph Rowntree. Another woman apparently accused of being in a relationship with RS McColl.