Pension Credit

[philip52]

I applied for Pension credit 4 months ago

 

when I applied I was told it would be backdated to the date of my claim

 

my wife was in receipt of income support and I was told to stop this a week before Pension credit was paid but there was no backdated pension credit even though the income support was declared to them

 

the pension credit back payment I was told was the difference between the two payments would be included in the payment .

 

Further more when I first spoke to pension Credit I was told what the amount would be less the weeks income support was in payment then after income support was stopped the full amount would be paid .

 

The truth was that the amount I was due as a couple was about half of what I was told and it would be not backdated and I only found this out when a payment went in my bank

 

although I have phoned them all I am told is wait for the letter which sets everything out

 

so far no letter how can DWP get it so wrong by telling you one thing then saying something else later .

 

How to I find out what is fact or fiction with out any paperwork which is always in the post.

[ericsbrother]

until you have some calculations and then the numbers they eventually arrived at no-one can say what is right and what is wrong. Formal complaint when something does arrive or in a fortnight if no letter.

[anmarj]

Pension Credit and Income support cannot be paid together as they are both income based benefits, so the Income support would have to stop before PC would kick in from the following day. So although you asked for backdating it cannot be paid as it is the same benefit but different name.

 

For example: If your wife's claim ended on a Monday, and your payday is, a Friday, the part payment would only be the days difference due ie Tuesday to Friday. using that calcuation see if that comes to what you actually received.

 

I am assuming it is part of the script the call handler has to go through which askes about backdating, which might be a mandortory question they have to ask, but until the claim is actually processed, that is only when they hit the brick wall with the income support that they know it can't be backdated