Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
On-going problem with Haringey Housing Benefit dept
Hello,
Hoping someone can give me some advice/ideas on how to solve a current problem with the Haringey Housing Benefit team.
I won't go into all the details (because that would be a very long post indeed), but the essentials are I have an unresolved Housing Benefit claim dating back to May earlier this year. I am challenging their calculations because they have received the incorrect information from DWP.
I have had really poor communication from that department throughout this process. It is impossible to speak to anyone directly who assesses the cases, it takes them up to 4 weeks to process any paperwork I send them, they only communicate via letter which some times takes 3 weeks to get to me and one time I actually had to pay the postage because they hadn't put enough on, and generally each letter doesn't really explain what is going on, often doesn't address my questions, asks for different things and I end up even more confused about what is going on and what I need to do.
The latest letter asks me to complete a form (which wasn't included in the letter) or submit audited accounts which I don't have because at the time I was self employed at the time. I have had so many conflicting messages I don't really think anyone knows how Housing Benefit works or is calculated.
I have asked quite a few times in my e-mails to speak to someone directly, have e-mailed the head of the department, my ward councillors but nothing seems to help and it continues to drag on.
The service really has been quite terrible, un supportive and in my view not fit for purpose. Trouble is my complaints seem to fall on deaf ears, making it all the more frustrating!
Any suggestions, thoughts or advice most welcome.
Thanks,
Caroline
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Caroline Murray on
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Thanks, yes I did consider that. Will give it a try to see if it helps. C
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Permalink Reply by Clive Carter on
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Hello Caroline,
Which Ward are you in?
I note that you have e-mailed them “but nothing seems to help and it continues to drag on”.
Your local Ward Councillors have a duty to represent you and to take up this kind of matter on your behalf.
It’s not clear whether or not you had a reply from them.
I suggest that you select a single local Ward Councillor and email him or her, possibly copying in the other two. If you fail to get a reply, you might consider a complaint to their Party’s Whip.
It may be more effective to have a face-to-face meeting at a Councillor Surgery. All Councillors hold surgeries for this kind of matter. Their times and places are published in libraries, noticeboards and elsewhere. Say that you look forward to an update when you see them at their next surgery.
You should try all these steps first. If all this fails, please contact me and I will try to help.
Clive Carter
Councillor, Highgate Ward
Liberal Democrat Party
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Thanks for getting back to me.
My ward is Harringay, have had some contact from my cllr, but not really a full answer from them, just that they were looking in to it. I will try the surgery and let you know if I have any further problems.
Caroline
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Hi, me again. Sadly still on going and not heard anything from the Cllr I have tried contacting directly since this post. They are a Labour cllr - who is the party Whip that I need to contact to complain? Sadly I have not been able to get to a surgery, but to be honest don't have much confidence in them now to proactively follow up my case!
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Permalink Reply by Tara-Lee Platt on
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I had problems with them a few years ago and asked Joe Goldberg to help - he gave them a nudge and my issues were resolved very quickly thereafter. Maybe drop him a line.http://www.minutes.haringey.gov.uk/mgUserInfo.aspx?UID=1299
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Thanks, will do!
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Permalink Reply by Alan Stanton on
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Tara may have contacted Cllr Joe Goldberg when he was the "Cabinet" councillor for Finance. That brief is now held by Cllr Jason Arthur (jason.arthur@haringey.gov.uk) Jason has an Advice "Surgery" on the second Saturday of each month at Hornsey Library and he has Skype Surgeries on Sundays 6pm – 7pm or ad hoc. You need to phone him for a Skype appointment.
Incidently, while other councillors may also do this, it's the first I've heard of a Haringey councillor using Skype. (BTW this is not me as an ex-Labour councillor giving a plug to someone from my party. I am yet to be impressed by Jason Arthur, so if he's breaking new ground and experimenting then credit to him! In my view the councillors' surgery system has been in the dark ages for several years.)
On the other hand, if one of your Harringay ward councillors is actually on the case, you may not want to get wires crossed. Maybe speak to them about getting Jason Arthur involved.
I assume you'e looked through the information for self-employed people on Haringey's website. Though it doesn't seem as helpful as other councils' online stuff - Hackney for example.
Have you tried the CAB?
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P.S. I should have typed "using Skype for council casework".
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Thanks for these suggestions, really helpful. Problem is still on-going and I still haven't heard back from my local cllr about how they might be able to help (send a direct e-mail to them). So not optimistic that they are on the case! Will try Cllr Jason Arthur. Thanks!
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Permalink Reply by Lisa Weston on
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I had real trouble with them a couple of years ago and spoke to a local Councillor about it (I forget her name), but then it got resolved. She didn't do much to help, although she said she raised the concern.
I hope it gets resolved soon. Relying on benefits sucks.
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Thanks for help - glad to hear there are some people who managed to get it resolved! I just not confident they are handling my claim correctly.
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