Plz HELP !!!! In BIG trouble with Tax Credits

[sara321]

I am a new member and seeking for help and hope I will get a help and guidance to sort out TAX Credit rejection.

 

I am a single mother of 2 children.

In Feb 2015 my husband and I went thru separation due to our every other day arguments which was going on for past 3 years and eventually he moved out in Feb 2015 and left me no money to pay for the bills.

 

While I was with him he used to get child tax credits and help from local council towards the house rent as he was on low wages and I was just a house wife. At time of separation my daughter was 13 yrs and son 6 yr old.

 

Once my husband moved out he informed the local authority about the change and circumstances and because of this the council stopped paying rent. I did not know anything about the council and tax credit matters as everything was dealt by my husband.

 

I applied for the housing & council tax benefits to my local council and child tax credits to HMRC which were all accepted.

My ex asked me NOT to go thru the child support because he will buy stuff and support children which he has been but never paid me any money. I got a job in a clothing store to meet the ends and to provide for my children.

 

Right after few weeks of separation I had been asking my ex to change his address as he does not live here.

He kept telling me he doesnt have a fixed address and he lives at different places such as few days/ weeks at his friends or relatives.

His letters from bank and other letters kept coming to my address

 

 

after roughly many months I got fed up and I started to return his letters to senders and also threw in the bin and as usual my ex kept repeating that he will change the address soon .

 

During the separation our relation had been up and down but I never stopped him from seeing the children as they dearly love him

 

 

especially my son he took all this badly that he often cried during his sleep calling his father and also his school teachers informed me that he seem to be lost in the class.

Due to the state of my children I gave him open access to my ex that he can see children whenever he wants to.

 

 

In April 2016 we gave a try to get back together and allowed him to move back with me and I also informed my local council in writing.

 

 

Unfortunately this did not work and I asked him to move out just after 2 weeks and once again I informed the council.

 

Then from July 2016 my tax credits were stopped without any advance notice.

On enquiring tax credit help desk told me to send my last 6 months bank statements, Pay slips, utility bills, Tenancy agreement of the property, housing & council tax benefit documents and also proof of address of my ex such as tenancy agreement.

I provided all the documents except 2 and that is my own and also my ex’s tenancy agreement.

 

My landlord has not provided me with the tenancy agreement due to being behind my rent and my ex could not provide his agreement because his landlord does not want to declare about the room renting to avoid tax.

 

 

Tax credits rejected my considerations and in Nov 2016 asked me again to provide the same but recent documents and once again I did send most of them except my own agreement.

My ex gave me only one tenancy agreement one of his addresses he had lived at.

 

 

In total my ex lived at 5 addresses and none of them issued him tenancy agreement except one which he gave to me to send to tax credits.

 

 

Recently I received a rejection letter from tax credits asking me to pay over £8K and have given me a time of one month (now less than 3 weeks) to apply for tribunal hearing.

 

I have done nothing wrong and got in this big mess.

There is no way I am able to pay that amount and don’t know what am I supposed to do.

 

 

I am in great stress and tensions and one of my friend mentioned about CAG to get advice.

Anyone here to advice and help to deal with this matter ?

I would appreciate your help.

 

Thanks

 

Please see the attached letter from HMRC I have received recently.

docs1.pdf

Edited January 24, 2017 by dx100uk

[honeybee13]

Hello and welcome to CAG. People should be along later with advice for you, but weekends are always a little quieter here, so please bear with us.

 

I'm afraid I can't read your images, you need to post them up as pdf files please.

 

My best, HB

[sara321]

Hello and welcome to CAG. People should be along later with advice for you, but weekends are always a little quieter here, so please bear with us.

 

I'm afraid I can't read your images, you need to post them up as pdf files please.

 

My best, HB

 

Sorry HB,

I have been stressed out and busy and trying to coup with children at the same time.

 

I did not know how to get the documents in to PDF but somehow i managed to do it.

 

Please see the attached PDF documents.

 

Many Thanks.

[dx100uk]

post 1 updated with pdf

[smokiejoe]

First, what date was the latest decision from a mandatory request? You should dipute the overpayment, but it should be done within 3 months of the date of that decision. See https://www.gov.uk/tax-credits-appeals-complaints/dispute-tax-credits-overpayment. I would also recommend getting an appeal to the tribunal sent asap, including the info you've shared in the forum already, and possibly including the answers to the following -

 

A few questions -

 

You advise ex left February 2015 initially. Do you have any copies of info fron anyone to support that date, such as removal services? Emails or letters from people helping to facilitate the move, and able to confirm where the move was to? Would your ex be willing to provide details of any accommodation he used and confirmation from anyone he lived with following leaving you? Does he have any bills/receipts for expenses from other addresses during that time?

 

Is your ex employed/self-employed? Would the amount of tax credit be the same if he had been in the house or out? Is his income over £18000 gross PAYE/net profit self employment? The amount of overpayment could be reduced when taking notional entitlement into consideration. Get help locally from CAB if possible in relation to discussing overpayment recovery. They can help with creating a reasonable I&E form on your behalf. Get in touch with HMRC by the date advised to begin disuccion on repayment options in the first instance. It doesn't mean you accept it is correct, but HMRC require contact by the date notified.

 

Do you have a copy of your request for your tenancy agreement from your landlord, and a copy of their response refusing to provide it?

 

Do you recall passing any bank/financial letters to your ex following the breakdown?

 

Who paid your household bills for the whole of the claim period? Did you pay by card or cash? Receipts?

 

Did you have a joint bank account? Did you change to a single account?

 

Do you have a pension whereby your ex is the beneficiary?

 

CSA - Ending their involvement since 2014. Sounds like you had a Family-based arrangement since HHBD, also known as family arrangements, voluntary

arrangements or private arrangements (see http://www.cmoptions.org/en/other-arrangements/endingcsa.asp). Was there anything in writing between you outlining what support you'd get?

 

It can seem quite daunting, but CAB can help deal with discussions around overpayments so you aren't on your own.

[sara321]

SmokieJoe thank you so much for advice.

 

 

Here is a breakdown of the questions you have asked and its to my best knowledge.

 

 

Before that just to let you know CAB don’t have appointments to give before 3 weeks and I don’t have that much time.

If I go to solicitor I don’t have money for solicitor fee.

 

In the very first paragraph you have asked “what date was the latest decision from a mandatory request? could you plz tell me what is mandatory request ?

as I do not know at all what it is supposed to be ?

I would write Tax Credits for tribunal hearing latest by coming Monday.

 

When my husband left

he did inform the local council in writing about this.

There was no removal services involved.

 

 

He took his belongings such as clothes, tools, laptop etc but also left bit of other stuff (2 tool boxes, and his very old clothes which were already in the loft) in the house and said he will pick them some other time.

 

 

After few months I put his stuff in the back shed.

Till today he has not collected his belongings.

 

 

When he left the property in Feb 2015 his excuse was that he don’t have permanent and stable accommodation to put his stuff in, and according to him he has been living at different properties (with his friends and relatives and also renting rooms) until May 2016.

 

 

He has provided me with 5 addresses where he has lived but none of them except ONE wanted to give any tenancy agreement to avoid property tax. All these address I provided to Tax Credits. None of the bills were on his name. He did not change his address from my property so during those times so there is NO letters/bills he is able to provide.

 

He works permanent part time 25 hrs for a firm and last I know his annual salary was maybe just over 18500 gross paye.

When he was claiming tax credits it was less than what I was getting.

I will discuss ASAP with HMRC for payment options.

I am working as part time and my wages after deductions is just over £550 per month.

You can imagine how difficult it has become for me to survive with children.

 

I have old tenancy agreement from landlord while husband was living here.

We were behind rent by £2500.

When ex moved out he paid his share half of arrears to landlord and also got in writing from landlord that he (my ex) now owes nothing to landlord.

 

 

When I started claiming for Housing and council tax benefits the council paid the rent directly in to landlord’s account, the council never paid enough to cover the full rent. In last 4 days I have received a letter from a landlord giving me a eviction notice to move out by mid of March and also asking the outstanding rent of £7200.

 

All the utility bills are on my name since husband moved out except the broadband due to my daughter’s studies which he kept on his name and paid the bill.

 

I paid the bills during my claim period and goes thru my bank account.

Bank account is on my name and never had a joint account in any bank.

 

I do not know about the pension. I started working in a clothing store after 6 months of separation.

We do not have any written arrangements regarding children. He has been financially supporting children, time to time he takes them out for meals, buy them clothes and toys for son. He also has been paying and still pays children’s sports activities for son’s karate classes, badminton classes, football classes and for daughter her studies tuition classes.

 

I am going to apply for tribunal hearing today and also will try to make an appointment with CAB. I am mentally stressed out and may breakdown. I am worried whats going to happen.

 

NOTE: just now I called HRMC to arrangements to repay, I have been told there is another overpayment of £2000 part of year 2016 . so the total has become £8069 (my adding is not correct).

 

 

I have made an arrangement of £20 to payback which for time being is accepted.

 

 

I have also asked HMRC to send me a letter showing a total combined amount so that I can apply for one tribunal hearing instead of 2 different hearings one for each disputed payment.

[smokiejoe]

Glad you called them before the deadline was reached,

should stop debt being passed to a collection company before you get a chance to discuss with CAB.

 

Cab will help deal and give advice about dealing with your debts and your issue with rent and landlord, so continue to get in touch.

 

Having someone to speak to face to face can help feel someone is sharing your problems!

 

I apologise!

THe letter attached to your first post is the reponse to your Mandatory Reconsideration and is dated 09 January 2017, so well within the timescale for disputing the Overpayment.

 

Please send the Appeal request asap.

 

If you look at what they say under the heading HMRC Evidence and Observations,

these are the points they appear to be using to decide you were in their view in a continuing joint relationship. Addressing these points would help when submitting your appeal.

 

They say you haven't provided sufficient bank statements.

You should be able to get these from your bank covering the period.

 

The aim is to show what income you had coming in to your account and how you used it to pay household bills.

 

Without clear evidence of you doing so, and without bills or similar to show that any amounts you didn't pay, such as for council tax, remain an outstanding unpaid amount, they are assuming someone else paid them.

 

You have the eviction notice from your landlord, which I expect is addressed to you alone.

Does it confirm the period from when you were deemed a single tenant and only you are responsible?

 

That and perhaps the confirmation your ex is no longer liable for any rent or arrears from the date he left the address may help.

 

If you paid any bills using cash, you may still have a receipt, but you would have to be able to show where the cash came from if not from your account.

 

With regards to live financial accounts,

unless you were to open any post addressed to your ex, you may not be aware what he has registered at the address.

 

This is a problem where people continue to pass on mail instead of returning it marked as not known at the address, especially if they continue to have a reasonable follow on relationship after a breakdown.

 

For example, did you continue passing mail when he came to see/collect the children?

I don't imagine many people consider updating an ex details from the voting register.

Not an automatic consideration.

If your ex was/is employed and didn't update an employer about his change in domestic arrangements, you wouldn't necessarily have known.

 

Yet again, any letters sent to your address that were passed on would have helped him maintain the belief he was at the address.

 

Provide the employer details and check if you can if he did update them at any time, and when.

 

You say only one other landlord was willing to provide confirmation he was at their property. It's better than none if you can confirm it.

 

With regrds maintenance for the children,

would your ex be willing to confirm in writing what the arrangement between you was, including his agreement to cover the cost of the internet service and why?

 

Any other regular payments he makes for childrens costs, and whther these are in cash to you or paid directly as part of his agreement to support his children.

 

These are all details that can help a tribunal potentially draw a different conclusion than HMRC.

 

Just points I'd suggest you may want to cover as part of your appeal.

[dx100uk]

great advice!!

 

 

Glad you called them before the deadline was reached,

should stop debt being passed to a collection company before you get a chance to discuss with CAB

 

 

just remember a DCA has NO LEGAL POWERS WHATSOEVER.

they are NOT BAILIFFS

 

 

don't be fooled.

 

 

dx