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whitevanwoman
Rank; Hector Tax Inspector
United Kingdom
65 Posts |
Posted - 24/10/2008 : 23:06:55
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Latest update - I sent off a SAR notice to Data Compliance in July, the 40 days were up on the 1st September. I got the paperwork though fairly quickly, to my surprise, within about 4 weeks, but there was the standard "recordings of phone calls will follow at a later date" note enclosed.
I gave it another 40 days after the 40 day deadline, and still having not received any recordings, I sent a letter of complaint, using the template on www.taxcc.org - how to dispute, step 2. That was posted on 20 October (recorded) and I today received a reply dated 22 October from a Flo Hamilton, Higher Customer Support Manager, TCO Preston which says :
"My team will be dealing with your enquiry. We aim to send you a reply by 15 Dec..."
Now is it me or does that seem totally outrageous? - that it is going to take them a further 2 months to reply to my complaint about not receiving all my data within 40 days, ie by 1st September.
Needless to say, my supportive MP, David Maclean, will be sent a copy of my letter and their response.
I will now be submitting a formal complaint to the Ombudsman and I would urge EVERYBODY else to do the same as it seems from the posts regarding SAR information received, that it is standard policy not to send phone call recordings in the first instance, and that they are only sent after repeated requests and complaints. This is ILLEGAL - under the Freedom of Information Act, TCO is not operating within the law and the only way that this is likely to be rectified is if enough people complain and involve their MPs and the press.
This is just another instance of HMRC trying to cover up their own errors by buying themselves time to delete or "lose" the relevant phone calls for victims to prove their cases. Don't let them shaft you a second time round by destroying or denying you the evidence that is rightfully yours.
I firmly believe that although the law may sometimes be an ass (as in the case of Magistrates being unable to overrule an obviously erroneous certificate of debt presented in court by HMRC), the law is the law, and no-one, not even the government themselves is above the law.
Instructions for life:
1.breathe in
2.breathe out
3.repeat ad infinitum
"Realise that if you have time to whine and complain about something then you have the time to do something about it" (Anthony d'Angelo) |
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whitevanwoman
Rank; Hector Tax Inspector
United Kingdom
65 Posts |
Posted - 06/11/2008 : 17:06:07
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Latest update - this morning the postie brought me 5 CDs of phone call recordings. As yet I haven't had a chance to listen to them but there is a huge long list of calls made with a summary of their content. From first glance at the list it seems to tally with my list but I suspect there are several calls missing from the very early days of my claim in 2004.
However, the summary of one call on the list reads as follows:
"AT - advised app that she has had an award for wtc based on her disability. App is not in receipt of DLA and I have removed the disabled marker as of 12/07/05. App would not let me provide her with answers and continued to interupt after warning. Released."
Now I remember this particular call vividly as it was a terrible, dreadful experience - the advisor would not listen to me telling him that I did not need to be on DLA, and that I had been on a qualifying benefit (incapacity ben) and would not allow me to read the guidelines about disability out to him. He was extremely rude and unpleasant, and during the call, out of sheer frustration because I knew I was right (I had the guidelines in front of me) and he was wrong but he was in control of my life and there was sod all I could do about it, and knowing that my financial situation was such that I was desperate for my WTC, in fact I could not afford to continue to work without it, I got really upset and stressed and he put the phone down on me. I think I can safely say that I was not offensive or abusive during that call - but we'll see when I listen to it.
Anyway that advisor terminated my claim straightaway after that call, and by the time I got through to another advisor 10 mins later to (a) make a complaint about the previous advisor (b) sort out the whole situation, it was too late. Apparently my claim had been terminated and finalised 10 mins before and so I needed to put in a new claim.
That was the start of all the real problems, and seems to have been the trigger for the "technical errors" that TCO seems to have been having with my claim ever since.
What I would give to haul that advisor's ass up in front of a disability tribunal or human rights tribunal on a discrimination charge, or maybe to answer a lack of duty of care charge. If anyone can give me some advice about whether its possible and how to go about it, please do.
Before I continue to vent my spleen any further, I need to listen and see exactly what is on these CDs (and what isn't!). I will keep you all posted.
Instructions for life:
1.breathe in
2.breathe out
3.repeat ad infinitum
"Realise that if you have time to whine and complain about something then you have the time to do something about it" (Anthony d'Angelo) |
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Alan the Geordie
Da Purple one
2787 Posts |
Posted - 06/11/2008 : 18:13:47
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>>>What I would give to haul that advisor's ass up in front of a disability tribunal or human rights tribunal on a discrimination charge, or maybe to answer a lack of duty of care charge. If anyone can give me some advice about whether its possible and how to go about it, please do.<<<
Ring up & say you're from Interflora & have a boquet for his wife, but because of some computer problem you're not sure of his address & please could he tell you.
THEN on some dark night, you land on his doorstep wearing your steel-toecapped boots & kick seven shades out of him when he opens the door!!
(It's a Geordie thing.)
"The best way to take control over a people and control them utterly is to take a little of their freedom at a time, to erode rights by a thousand tiny and almost imperceptible
reductions. In this way the people will not see those rights and freedoms being removed until past the point at which these changes cannot be reversed."
Adolf Hitler |
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romanirai
Rank; Hector Tax Inspector
United Kingdom
18 Posts |
Posted - 07/11/2008 : 18:22:20
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I also sent the complaint letter off last week because I had not had any telephone recordings, although I received the paperwork in response to my SAR request at the beginning of Sept.
My complaint letter must have crossed in the post as I received one CD next day. There were only 4 calls recorded and none of the important ones that I need !! However in response to my complaint letter, I received a letter yesterday form Gary Prescott Higher Customer Support, saying; " We aim to send you a reply by 10th Dec. If you need to speak to us about your letter, please phone us at the above number." There was actually another contact number rather than just the helpline !!
So I thought it was worth a go to see if I could enquire about the missing calls and perhapes ask about our most recent claim sent to them in July, which we still have had no response to.
The chap that answered was very abrupt to begin with; however he mellowed as the conversation went on, as I tried to be as polite as possible !! He said the SARS request hadn't been closed at present, so it was still possible I might receive some more CD's. I explained also that we had no money since June and could he see what was happening with our claim for this years TCs. He said that he would chase it up and get the Case Team to deal with the paperwork as soon as possible. Now that I do have his name and another contact phone number, I wonder if it will be a help, we shall see.
As far as you claiming WTC and being disabled. My husband has only been working 16-20 hours a week ever since he began claiming in 2001. He is self employed and qualified for the disability element because he was getting a disability premium with income support when he first applied. I am sure DLA qualifies you for receiving the disabitiy element with WTC. He unfortunately, usually makes a loss each year, so I can't see that there should be a problem, as long as you do the minimum of 16 hours and keep accounts. But who knows with HMRC !!
I think it is shows great tenacity on your part to have suffered so much at their hands and have bounced back and are willing to work for yourself and are still willing to have a go to sort the B*****d's out !! |
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the manual payments black hole syndrome
