Universal credit chaos leaves tenants in tears

Reply to the comment left by Mick Roberts at 19/01/2024 - 10:23
Fortunately, for me so far, they have only asked for the letters and tenancy agreements (all since January 2024) & yes it would be a lot simpler if they paid the tenant directly which would also prevent evictions of those that use the rent money & obviously less homelessness.

Housing Benefit (or Housing Credit) is one of the easiest and most often abused benefits in the U.K.

I, just like any other taxpayer, wholeheartedly support the DWP in their efforts to identify the fraudsters. This should be done competently (not a trait that public servants are noted for) and within the bounds of currently laws.

The DWP should be watching the developments in the Post Office scandal with interest. They must protect the Public Purse but they must do so in the right way.

Reply to the comment left by Clint at 19/01/2024 - 11:38
Meant to say
......paid the Landlord directly,,,,,,,,

Reply to the comment left by Zen at 19/01/2024 - 10:58
Very good words.

Reply to the comment left by Reluctant Landlord at 19/01/2024 - 11:00
That's exactly it. It's unnecessary grief. I/We can get more money off non UC tenants. We doing the state a favour and again yet penalised for it

Reply to the comment left by Reluctant Landlord at 19/01/2024 - 11:12
I think the total UC claim as they asking for kids and Doctors letters too.

Reply to the comment left by Bill irvine at 19/01/2024 - 11:28
That's exactly it Bill.
They infer many of the tenants are fraudulent.
Last year, DWP was the proof that people lived in this country. The bedrock. The best thing. Now, DWP want proof off someone else.

Hi
DWP's staff is looking at the overall award. However, the lion's share, in many areas, is the "housing costs" element, and it is to that they often focus their attention. In areas like London the housing costs can be anything between £1-2Kpcm
As Cider Drinker suggests, no one will take issue with DWP identifying and pursuing the genuine fraudsters. But, if you look at some of my examples, one concerns a young graduate, who receives a £10K demand for an alleged overpayment, fully 16 months after her claim had ended, due to her starting full-time work. DWP initially refused to accept her appeal as being out of time and needed a referral to a District Judge before they relented.
What DWP did in that case, was not only wrong, but illegal; hence its later restoration of her award.

In another, the alleged overpayment of £60k was eradicated with a £24K backdate being paid.

The analogy with the scandalous Post Office affair is well made, as DWP is well aware of what's happening, as I'm writing to its hierarchy on an all too regular basis. However, if anything the malpractice is spreading, like COVID, to all corners of GB causing chaos, disruption to claims, and evictions, due to housing costs stopping.

Reply to the comment left by Bill irvine at 19/01/2024 - 12:00
We tend to think that this is all merely incompetence, it isn't, it's actually the malign intent of those globalists intent on depriving us of all private property (meaning everything) leading us into the maw of their dystopian CBDC, 24/7/365 surveillance, upside down world. The late Christopher Story wrote of the several steps to the destruction of a state, visible societal breakdown is at end stage.

Hi Moneymanager

In this case, the system, as designed, is not being applied, because the staff DWP employs are not being properly trained nor supported.

Many of the staff, operating at the coal face, are not even DWP employees. More likely, they're employed by SERCO, Capita or Group4 and haven't a clue what they're doing. Instead they are provided with scripts and template responses.

In addition, there is no consistency to what's happening; it's very much a lottery. For landlords operating in the south of England, they're more likely to encounter major problems, especially in relation to APA (Direct Payment) requests.

Where the system offers rights of appeal, the problems can be resolved quite easily. Most are conceded without troubling a tribunal.