Pollyana

Not sure what happened to the quotes in this thread, but I've done my best to fix at least the majority of them.......

dunroving

It usually starts with someone either deleting text in their response or bolding text and accidentally carrying over into the "[/quote]" tags. Once one person does that, every subsequent message is messed up ... come on people, it's not that complicated!

livinginreality

Well if I knew anyone falsely claiming benefits,I would'nt hesitate to grass them up.Why should I work fulltime myself,only to be paying through taxes to people who can't be assed!(i'm not talking about genuine people in need here).I wonder for example,how many single mums out there genuinely fell pregnant by accident?Or fell pregnant deliberately so as not to "work"!We had a polish male cleaner at work a couple of years ago.He was living here with his girlfriend and their baby.His girlfriend was claiming single mothers pension,council tax rebate and so on and they were living together!!!He worked full time?????Stories like that make my blood boil.

Dessiree

me too, it makes me sick the people in this country that sponge off the state. We would probably get more money if my husband didn't work and we were on benefits and he'd get to spend more time with our toddler and baby, but he couldn't do it, because it wouldn't be right, and thats what it comes down to, these chavs just don't have a conscience! I knew by the title i shouldn't have even started to read this thread because it'll probably take me about an hour to calm down!!!!

Easterndawn

I have read this thread and cannot understand how anyone can save money or even make the ends meet. I am a single woman who is trying desperately to find a job, although I am a educated person with a University degree and send out 10 to 15 CV's per week, have my CV with many employment agencies, willing to take any job, unfortunately because I have been diagnosed with arthritis in my knees, hips and ankles and cannot take a position that would mean that I had to spend many hours on my feet. I receive £65.00 per week for housing benefit, and £58.00 per week for Jobseekers benefit. From that I pay $90.00 per week for rent. £28.00 for broadband and mobile phone per month, £16.00 per month for prescriptions and the rest is to be used for groceries and bus fare when going to jobcentre and looking for work. I do not smoke, go the pub (not that I wouldn't like to go for a glass of wine once and a while) or gamble I have had to sell some my jewellery to make the ends meet and even then it is difficult.

So tell me how do they do it? For I cannnot understand

Elvira

Simple - they don't just live on benefits.

Cash-in-hand, under the table, black economy......... call it what you like.

(Sorry you're having such a tough time. Fingers crossed for better luck soon )

dunroving

If you are on benefits, you shouldn't be paying for prescriptions ... and even people earning a wage can buy a 3-month prescription certificate for £13 (or £38 for a 12-month one, in Scotland) that covers all prescriptions for free ... your chemist should have told you this by now. Ask them next time you are there and you'll save yourself some cash:

http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Healthcare/M...sts/DH_4049383 (certificate details)

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publicati.../01/30125542/7 (exemptions)

- of course in Wales they are free for everyone.

lilybilly101

People on welfare can't possibly lead lives of luxury unless they're working under the table. I feel badly for people like you that so badly want to get out and work. I really admire you!

Easterndawn

But aren't they worried about getting caught, I even told them about the few times I have worked for my friend and they now take £8.00 a week off even though I haven't worked since before Christmas, still I don't think I could say nothing without looking and feeling very guilty

Easterndawn

No one told me they kept asking me when I took my prescription in to sign here if I paid and at another spot if I did not. I always sign and pay, I guess it makes me feel like I have some self respect.

dunroving

If you want to pay as a matter of principal, then pay for the 3-month certificate (£13). Even employed people in Wales pay NOTHING, so getting your prescriptions for free isn't a crime. ;-) If I were you, I'd sign as a person on JSA, and get them free - it's a privilege and entitlement of being a UK resident.

dunroving

Now, I think that is the daft part of the system. My cousin is quite willing to work, and could get part-time work, but if she does so, her benefits will be removed, and she'd be no better off (worse off, because then she'd have to pay for child care).

I think there should be some sliding scale that allows the "unemployed" to do a little part-time work - maybe reduce benefits by 50p for every £1 earned.

No wonder so many welfare recipients don't bother looking for a job.

britvic

Put it this way.........its bloody hard being out of work over here
Be thankful for what you do get back in the UK.

BristolUK

It's odd isn't it...the effort involved in managing this sort of thing and, most importantly, getting away with it...well...the effort could be put into something that pays greater rewards.

BristolUK

To an extent it's already there. There is a disregard on earnings. Not sure how much it is now. It was never that much, although it was more generous for lone parents.

But it's more beneficial if you can earn enough to take yourself off JSA. You could still get housing benefit, keeping pretty much a third of everything extra at that point.

Many people assume that if they lose their JSA, they lose the Housing Benefit for Rent as well but they can still get some even if the take home pay is more that they were getting in benefits.

You can only be worse off if there is some other expense involved in taking the P/T job.

I'm not up to date on the latest figures but as a rough guide you could be getting £60 JSA plus £60 rent = £120

A part time job of about £80 (take home) and you'd get around £55 in rent money, so £135.

A p/t job paying £120 (take home) and you'd still get around £25-£30 rent money, so £145 or £150.

Not huge gains but maybe it gets your foot back in the door for other work or increased hours.

Job Centre staff have access to a very good computer program that will give a very accurate before/after comparison if benefit recipients want to check what they could still get.

Part of the problem is that some people will look at their £120 or so in benefits and turn their nose up at a job for £200, thinking "I'm only working for £80."

It's kind of understandable, but then the other people who are on £200 would also be working "only for £80"...it's just that they don't think of it in the same way. They don't want to be £80 worse off, while some on JSA don't think £80 extra is enough.