Income Support changing to Fortnightly

[Amethyst]

If you are receiving it weekly at the moment be warned this is happening in May.

If you are receiving Giros they are forcing you to have it paid into a post office or bank account.

They are offering you an interest free loan of one weeks payment to assist with the changeover which you repay fortnightly over 4 months.

Just a note anyway to check any weekly DD's / Standing Orders/recurring payments.

[BigK]

Re: Income Support changing to Fortnightly

Amethyst

True there is no appeal against the change to fortnightly payments.

However, you can refuse to change from girocheques to Direct Payments into a bank or PO account, though they will continually nag you every few months.

There is a legal obligation to pay you.

What you need to do is write - just once - that you wish to continue to receive your payments by girocheque because of your own particular circumstances. Do not explain your circumstances - its no business of their's. Do not respond to any subsequent letters unless you fancy paying for another postage stamp.

Do not give any bank details.

Because of that legal obligation they will continue to pay by girocheque.

This is from personal experience. We are State Retirement Pensioners - our adult daughter is on IS and DLA. We all insisted on girocheques when Order Books where phased out years ago and we are still on them despite frequent requests to change. The Mail on Sunday says that 300,000 others are too.

Only write the once and if you are harassed then get to your MP's surgery and complain. He/she will want you to change too because after all he or she is one of those overpaid people who are supposed to represent us. Don't give him/her details of your circumstances either - just repeat, as many times as necessary that you want to stay on benefits and insist he or she writes to the Secreatary of State to stop the harassment.

Be assured your benefits will not stop.

[BigK]

Re: Income Support changing to Fortnightly

Further to my recent post about girocheques I've done a search for a document I knew I had somewhere.

The clerks in Benefit Agencies are told not to give you girocheques as a choice of payment method, unless you refuse Direct Payments or do not give them your bank account details.

Google - Informed Choice Discussion/Conversation and download to Word - This is a document to Benefits Agencies staff to instruct them to deter people who want to have girocheques by not mentioning their availability.

See top 2 lines of Page 2, bottom paragraph of Page 4 and the content of page 5.

Kind Regards - and let's see everyone informed about the sly methods they use.

Read more at: Legal Beagles Consumer Forum - Thank you