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Forum Home  →  Discussion  →  Income support, JSA and tax credits  →  Thread

Jobcentre plus. Applying procedure??

benefitsadviser
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Sunderland West Advice Project

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Total Posts: 1004

Joined: 22 June 2010

I am getting sick and tired of the nasty tricks being used by Jobcentre Plus to close JSA claims and i want some opinions on this.

Client claimed IRJSA on 2nd may 2015.

He has a private pension paying 35 quid a week, and naturally they wanted details to calculate entitlement.

He sent them to Wolverhampton (groan) and he was due to be paid today.

No money in, i called JC+ and they told me that his claim had been closed as the department hadnt received what they were asking for in 7 days.

He had a previous claim in for JSA which ended 20th april 2014, so they already KNEW his income details.

i asked him what right they had to close the claim after only 7 days and he pretty much told me they can do what they want. I challenged him on this and asked why the decision to close hadnt been put in writing, as its appealable. He told me they didnt have to.

I despair….................

Doing Rapid reclaim, and requesting backdate…................

[ Edited: 21 May 2014 at 01:33 pm by benefitsadviser ]
Andrew Dutton
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Welfare rights service - Derbyshire County Council

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Total Posts: 1976

Joined: 12 October 2012

I agree with Tony that this malpractice should not go unchallenged. There seems to be a growing attitude in JC+ of ‘we can do what we want’. Is it poor training or a corpoprate culture that says ‘Stop the claimants: we don’t care how’?

Or….both.

nevip
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Welfare rights adviser - Sefton Council, Liverpool

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Joined: 16 June 2010

Claims for benefit must be adjudicated upon and there is no power to “close a claim” and do nothing further (CE/1156/2013, CH/2155/2003).  Decisions on claims must be notified to the claimant in writing (reg 28 A&A Regs).