My friend was placed in the ESA IB Support Group for 2 years which is up beginning of April, but he's not had a renewal yet. Is there a delay in sending out ESA renewals? Thanks

Hey Folks, I've just received a letter this week with a DLA renewal form giving me until Jan 27th, 2014 to send it in. Despite being in constant comms with the DLA, i.e. sending them every letter from consultants, doctors and therapists since my claim I have to renew it? I don't quite get this, in every second letter it's made quite clear that this is a permanent illness. Do I need to renew every 2 years or something? What's worse is the pure stress of being scared to send this is fearing a battle is causing other repercussions... At the moment, I rely HEAVILY on my DLA to cover annoying costs of dealing with it, and rely even mores on the disability component of my WTC to keep my head just above water. On top of all of that is because I'm only 34, if they botch it up and deny me, which I've seen happening more and more all over the place I'll even lose my HB as it just covers my rent due to being on DLA. What can I do about this to keep my back covered? It's not like this illness is going away, specialists which took a 7 year waiting list to see confirm everything in writing too. I'm almost tempted to send the form back sarcastically and in big red writing "should i renew my illness too?" lol Some advise would be really handy. Cheers, A *edit* just to add, even the medication that I'm been treated with should be a good indicator, being in the amphetamine phonily and being a listed controlled medication, it's potent stuff and not given out like smarties by doctors :-/

hi guys i am coming upto that dreaded time of esa renewal in may2014 and was wondering how it goes as we went to tribunal our first time having gone from 0 points to 15 at tribunal so was wondering how it went now also my husbands symptons have got worse and we think he should be in support group and not wrag xx

Hi everyone, Quick query regarding renewal of my car insurance. The renewal happened at Christmas time. Busy time as any, but of course I will be told I should keep on top when the renewals occur. Typical excuse, didn't receive written confirmation of the renewal quote. Only thought something wrong when I checked my January statement to find the premium had gone up. Call LV, they confirm the amount. I then tell them I have just run my car details and produced another quote on their own website. Guess what, it came up cheaper. When I asked why they would do this to me when I had no claims for the last year with them, or the other 3 with my previous company, phone went silent, they went off to talk to their people. Came back and said they would cancel the renewal and waive the cancellation charge - only if I renewed with them. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but why would they backtrack so quickly and cancel the renewal without charge if they had not made a mistake? I printed PDFs of the online quotes so I have them as evidence too. However I just need a bit of guidance from you knowledgeable people. Have they imposed unfair terms on me by inflating the true renewal cost of my insurance? Is the contract still binding if they make an error of this kind? It works out at another £200 per year; not small change by my book. They have written to me on Monday, but still nothing, and again today. They also said they would call to discuss later today. I said how can I discuss anything you can't show me in writing?! They said they'll 'see' if it is at all possible to email me.

I have a motorbike which has been insured by Bennets since 2009 however due to lack of use last year I decided to wrap it up and leave it in the garage (not ridden since last summer) So when my new policy came through at the end of August I sent the certificate back with a covering note explaining I didn't wish to take out the policy as I understood that was what was required. At the end of Nov I noticed Bennetts were still taking money from my account so I stopped the d/d, it wasn't a huge amount £21 a month, since I stopped the d/d they have been chasing me for the money and now are threatening to pass the matter on to a debt collection agency. When I noticed the d/d was still going out I sent a letter asking what they were doing, I have had no reply to that but today have spoken to them and they claim they have no record of that letter or the return of the cert. I realise I may have little recourse as I have chosen not to find alternative insurance and just moth ball the bike but feel that I am not in the wrong and if anything they owe me money as I feel I did what was required. I am more than happy to stand my ground and fight them but would welcome any advice.

Hi all, I've just got off the phone with Orange/EE customer services after checking my bank account to discover that they are still taking payments for a contract that expired in October. Now, I followed their requirements and gave them 30 days notice not to renew back in September. They said 'no problem' and informed me that I'd have to make one final payment after the expiration date and then that's that (which is why I didn't bat an eyelid when they took money in November). Imagine my surprise when I logged on to my online banking to find they are still taking my money. So I rang them up to find out what was going on. They acknowledged that I had indeed asked not to renew my contract. They then said they received another call asking to 'un-unrenew' said contract. So they did. I did no such thing! Why would I? I've been with another (PAYG) provider since my old phone went kaput several months before my contract with Orange even expired! I hadn't used my Orange SIM since I changed phones. Why would I want to continue a contract I a) no longer use and hadn't used in months, and b) wasn't even happy with considering I got a better deal for a third of the price elsewhere? Makes zero sense, doesn't it? So they've cancelled the contract for me. Again. Which means they'll be charging me for another 2 months. Thing is. I cancelled the Direct Debit with them. And they want £40 for the month on Monday. My mother reckons I shouldn't pay it and should take the matter up with Citizens Advice coz she reckons Orange are trying it on. Now, I'd love to tell them where to stick it, but I'm worried my credit rating will be affected if I don't pay up. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Has anybody else had similar dealings with Orange? I've heard that they've got form for this sort of thing.

Hi. JUST WONDERED IF ANYONE CAN ADVISE ME HOW THINGS STAND. i HAVE OVERLOOKED THE RENEWAL DATE ON MY pHOTOCARD by 3years..no reminder from DVLA. I want to send for this ASAP but am worried that I may incur a hefty Fine..can anyone help.? thanks..

I've just read on the 'Benefits and Work' forum that DLA claimants outside the 'Capita' area who are not currently being transferred to PIP are (mostly) no longer going to be assessed by ATOS and will instead have their claims decided based on information from 'a variety of sources' (DWP). Apart from obvious questions such as why? and if DWP no longer need ATOS, what have they been paying them for? I mostly would like to know if it's true? Also, would it apply to Attendance Allowance claims or were they never assessed by ATOS?

Someone has asked me to enquire on their behalf regarding the new PIP rules when someone is already in receipt of DLA. They received their award following their consultant completing form DS500 which advises the DLA team that they have a terminal condition. They have a motability vehicle through the scheme and their DLA award is due to expire next summer. They have spoken to the DLA team this week and been advised that they will receive a telephone call approximately 20 weeks in advance to be interviewed over the phone and subject to their answers is whether or not they get it renewed. I have been researching through this site to look for similar threads but I presume because it is quite early on in the transition of things, that not too many people have yet been affected. Therefore, can anyone point me in the right direction as to what they might expect in a telephone interview and whether their consultant is still able to complete forms on behalf of his patient? Who will carry out these telephone interviews? Will there still be an appeal process? I am certainly not looking for people's personal opinions as to whether a terminal patient should or should not receive this benefit, I am strictly looking for accurate information set out by either DLA/government bodies or other community organisations which maybe fighting the government and or supporting people through this transitional process. Thanks in advance

For the past year we have been with Ovo Energy and earlier this month they sent me a renewal notice with prices to fix for another year. I looked at the prices, did a comparison and accepted their prices although slightly higher than a couple of companies. I accepted Online however when I got the confirmation email the next day I noticed that the prices were excluding VAT which then made them even more uncompetitive. In fairness they do have the VAT charghe mentioned on the website, but it is not immediately obvious. Why exclude VAT for domestic customers as it is highly unlikely that a domestic customer could claim back VAT? Other suppliers include VAT in their prices. I immediately contacted them and told them to cancel the renewal as I would prefer to shop around. It took several days for a reply and I was told that as it was a renewal I could not cancel. I pointed out that in essence it was not a renewal, but a new contract as one of the conditions had changed as the unit price had increased and that under Distance Selling Regulations I was entitled to cancel. I also stated that if they disputed this then I required a deadlock letter from Ovo. Nearly two weeks has passed and I have not had an answer. Am I right in thinking DSR apply to contracts. Really annoyed with Ovo at present as I would rather have £10 in my pocket than theirs!

Niece has been charged £50 admin for cancellation when she refused payment on an auto renew car policy. The 15 days, (while she was out of the country and the car not sorned), she can accept, but what is the validity of a £50 admin fee?

Hi everyone Have a friend who gave an estimate in the year 2011/12 (self-employed). He forgot to get in touch with them to give the actual figure (once his accounts were done - figure was a few grand higher that the estimate). He now needs to ring the tax credit people today to get his renewal in on time for 2012/13. When he tells them of the actual income figure for 2011/12 will they just adjust his award for 2012/13 accordingly (I don't know anything about tax credits). He'd rather do the renewal by post but, of course, today is the deadline. Thanks in advance

I insured my car with 1st Central Insurance Group knowing they had an auto renewal policy. 6 weeks before the policy ran out I received a quote from another company over £100 cheaper. I checked all the term and conditions for cancelling and followed them to the letter. I then called the company and they confirmed the policy had be cancelled. I have just received 3 emails confirming direct debit payment details, policy document and renewal confirmation. I now find this is common with them They deny all knowledge of cancellation and take an admin fee to rectify it. Take my advice - avoid this tin pot company like the plague!

Hi, I hope someone can help clarify what we should do. I've roamed the internet, but am just confused! We (me and OH) are coming to the end of an AST (we live in London). Back in June, we confirmed that we wished to renew, and agreed to a rent increase (£100 extra pcm- ouch), and the Letting Agent said they would be in touch closer to the date our AST expires (23rd July), to arrange to sign another year's contract. All this was by email, and we've not heard anything since. I understand that if another contract is not signed, then the tenancy becomes a periodic tenancy? Or are we obliged to vacate the property? The rent increase is also troubling us- We've not received any paperwork about the increase, other than the email back in June from the letting agent stating that the landlord was asking for £100 extra, which we agreed to by email, after trying to negotiate a lesser rise (no dice!), also by email. We pay monthly by standing order- should we continue to pay the present amount, or amend it to the inreased amount? If we don't increase the amount, we are worried that the landlord will give us notice- and we cannot afford to move at the moment. But we haven't received anything formal in terms of the increase. Hope this all makes sense. Any advice? Thanks, V

Hi, After my last company crashed and burned due to unforseen circumstances, and after much thought I've opened up another company. It was opened July 2012 but because I was still in the process of liquidating the previous one, I left it on the sheft as dormant with no books. As soon as the old company was dissolved, I got started on doing the research to get the companies business plans etc... into place. Due to the nature of the business this is not an easy task. Today a week ago I get a letter from the council stating that they want ALL of the companies financial details, which there are non of. Furthermore, they class me as 'self employed' despite being the sole director employed by my LLC. Should they be asking about earnings of a LLC? Furthermore, they tell me this morning, that they need a financial forecast for the next year WITHIN A WEEK. How can I homestly sit down and prepare an entire business plan in a bleeding week? THere's ALOT of research to do, loads of companies to contact despite quite a few laws and regulations to look up before I can even think that far ahead. I explained this, and she said she can give me a week extension (LOL). If I can't provide this information, then they will dock me for so many months HB and CT benefit OVERPAYMENT. If I just bodge numbers together, this is pretty much fraudulent as they aren't true figures which I haven't yet researched. If I come up with estimates, and these differ from any one of the drafts of final plan, I can be done for fraud again. What should I do about this? I'm at a loss... Luckily, I can cover the period from Oct '12 - April '13 with proper balance sheets from my old business. BUt in terms of this new business, i can't even fathom what my income or expend will be. Let alone what all of my investment applications will result in. Any helps would be much appreciated Thanks Adrian

Hi all i am new to this forum. Just wanted to ask as i have just renewed my tax credits this year and i was told it will take 6 weeks for the final award? is this the normal waiting time? i have given final figures and think i may have an over payment. Wondered if everyone has been told six weeks wait? little anxious as i want to know what over payment it stressing me a little xxx

My husbands DLA is due for renewal on the 26th September 2013. We received the forms a few weeks ago which he completed and returned. A few days ago we received a letter just informing him that his forms had been received on the 6th June and it could take 8 weeks to process and they may need to send him for a medical or pay him a visit. Today we received a letter saying that his DLA has been awarded until September 2014. The letter also says they have used the information on the form and his recent ATOS medical from the 1st March. I was expecting the usual battle but this has been processed quickly without the usual hassle. Is this usual or has the process changed recently?

Hi, I've renewed my assured shorthold tenancy, running for 12 months, and the only clause in the agreement is the following The previous agreement had a break clause after a six months initial fixed term, and now I'd like to give my two months notice to leave the apartment: am I still subject to the initial six months fixed term? Does it apply again from the renewal starting date? Thanks.

I would be grateful for anybody's experience / views on the below. About 9 months ago two cars suddenly braked in front of me in the middle of a roundabout. I braked before the second car. The front car left (it had stopped at the entrance to the fast lane on the dual carriage way, done a U turn and left). In the meantime another car bumped into me (slowly) and this caused me to bump the car in front (a semi rusty japanese saloon). I learnt today that the car in front has subsequently put in 4 injury claims to my insurer despite the bump being minor and not being subject to any whip lash injuries or other myself (and no marks on the front or back of my clean unmarked golf). I tried to renew my insurance last week and the premium has gone up from c.£340 to £511 as a result of a claim outstanding. This claim is a) not my fault techincally as it was the car behind that bumped me b) I am reasonably convinced to be part of a fraudulent set up. What pains me is that apparently there is a 3 year claim period (another 30 months) during which time this claim is outstanding, I loose my no claims bonus and have an additional annual £170 to pay. I tried to reason with the insurer that they know this is not my fault as they have solicitors notes on the case but they say their policy forces them to charge me the extra. Any bright ideas/ routes to tackle this blatent annual £170 cost that I am likely to have to pay for something that someone else has full responsibility for please let me know! The innocent plaintiff should not have to foot the bill in this situation surely!

Hi, can anyone give me a link to a new law that came in this year (I think) that states a mobile contract can't be automatically renewed by the provider. Thanks

Hello All It is seldom that I go as far as to actually join a website (not just a website but an action group!) to voice my concerns, but the arrogance of the CO OP insurance company has really driven me to this. I recently had an appointment with my business banking manager and noticed that on my account there were payments to the CIS INSURANCE COMPANY spanning the last three (3) years. I bought a 12 month policy from the CO OP back in July 2010. Apparently, since I had opted to pay by direct debit, they simply retained my bank details and continued to bill me for all this time. What a [problem]. I have called to complain and they are investigating it. According to the customer service team at co op they write to you and give you your quote and the option NOT to buy it. My problem with this is: 1. I dont expect to have to call a company and tell them I don't want to buy something - and if i don't call them they will simply take money anyway. 2. I signed a 12 month contract. Not a three year contract. It isn't a rolling contract and i didn't ask for a quote beyond 12 months. 3. They assume that you are going to even get the letter (you might not, for example if you were ill or on holiday or moved address or any number of reasons - not to mention relying on the Royal Mail!) 4. They have other contact details - including email addresses and telephone numbers to confirm these things 5. They never even asked if I wanted that option (at least I think not, I might ask for a copy of the first telephone conversation and paper work to make sure!) 6. I dont expect to have to check all my bank accounts to see if I am being billed by companies for things I never asked for or agreed to 7. They kept hold of my bank details and then used them without my permission. They kept them for longer than was necessary to complete the initial transaction. 8. The have the arrogance to think that even I did get a letter I am going to bother to read it past the quote provided before it goes to the circular file I buy insurance as and when I need or think I might need it and only after taking several quotes - usually from compare the market. I now have a full set of MeerKats Really really annoyed with this one. I am told it will take up to 8 weeks to resolve this. Has anyone been through this before?

Hi, When I moved into this property, I had to pay $45 for a credit check and referral check to start the residency. Since then, every 6 months, to renew the tenancy (6 month fixed AST) they charge me the same over and over again for credit checks and reference checks. Can they keep on doing this? 1) THere is no evidence on my credit report that any checks were carried out 2) The references I gave them confirmed that they've never been spoken to about the tenancy at all I'm just getting prepared to argue this, as I'm almost certain that they will come back and tell me, 'its an admin fee'. THis time, its in the order of £60. In terms of the admin fee, they pretty much print off the same MS Word Document, which luckily I have a copy of too, and send it to me. SOme advice would be greatly appreciated as I'm in a bit of a rutt. I dont sign and I risk rent increases every 6 months, which has been happening (April and Oct/Nov each year) or I sign and get docked anyway. APril the contractual 4% admin increase and Oct/Nov the %10 greedy LL increase. Cheers, A

My DLA runs on in Dec 13, roughly when can I expect the renewals forms?

ive getting my renewel through and its over £150 more expensive that what theyre offering online, i rang them up to query, they checked again and still claiming price still stands with the renewal. Is it ok for me to just tell them i dont wish to renew and just buy the cheaper price off them online? Does it work that way?

Hi I have a one year assured shorthold tenancy agreement. It contains no prohibition on keeping pets in the flat, as has been confirmed by my letting agent. However, I have received notice that, should I wish to renew the tenancy in July, the new lease agreement will contain such a prohibition. Are landlords/letting agents allowed to change terms and conditions other than rent on a renewal? Is there any legislation on this? Many thanks.