Thought Id start this one going because its rather dead on this board at the moment and I suppose all my usual muckers are either at the Stella tennis event watching Dim Tim (lose again) or at Henly Regatta eating cucumber sandwiches (they wish,...NOT).

Anyway please feel free to just talk to yourself blast away and let it go on any company or subject you wish. Just wish Id thought of this one before.

cheers GF.

IDS and his Dwarf Ester at it again........

From the inside.......

ESA NEWS: SANCTIONS

In the last newsletter we revealed that ESA sanctions had increased fourfold in the space of a year, up to December 2013 and are particularly targeted at claimants with mental health conditions . Whilst we had no doubt that the reason for this was to cut the cost of ESA we had no evidence to support this.

Now, however, the first shred has appeared with Polly Toynbee claiming in the Guardian that she has had discussions with an anonymous jobcentre manager:

“She told me how the sick are treated and what harsh targets she is under to push them off benefits. A high proportion on employment and support allowance have mental illnesses or learning difficulties. The department denies there are targets, but she showed me a printed sheet of what are called "spinning plates", red for missed, green for hit. They just missed their 50.5% target for "off flows", getting people off ESA. They have been told to "disrupt and upset" them – in other words, bullying. That's officially described, in Orwellian fashion, as "offering further support" . . . In this manager's area 16% are "sanctioned" or cut off benefits”

Members can download a detailed guide on how to prevent and overturn ESA sanctions from the ESA section of the members area – it might be a good idea to have a quick look through it in the near future, particularly if you are in the WRAG.

The manager also claimed that:

“Tricks are played: those ending their contributory entitlement to a year on ESA need to fill in a form for income-based ESA. But jobcentres are forbidden to stock those forms. These ill people's benefits are suddenly stopped without explanation: if they call, they're told to collect a form from the jobcentre, which doesn't stock them either.”

Although we have found copies of the ESA3 form online, there does not appear to be a downloadable version of the current form, suggesting that the DWP is indeed making it as hard as possible for people to make a claim.

These targets and tactics come as no surprise. What Toynbee claimed that was new to us, however, was the manager’s allegation that:

“As all ESA claimants approach the target deadline of 65 weeks on benefits – advisers are told to report them all to the fraud department for maximum pressure.”

The idea that all ESA claimants are now being reported to the fraud department when they have claimed for 65 weeks seems preposterous and almost inconceivably discriminatory. Yet the ugly lawlessness that now characterises the DWP’s attempts to cut claimant numbers means that an accusation like this has to be considered seriously.

We are now working to try to establish the truth of this claim – we’ll let you know what we discover.

Meanwhile, we’ve begun compiling a collection of ESA sanction examples taken from various online sources to illustrate how easily, and unfairly, ESA claimants can be sanctioned.

the difference fred is that i live within my means
that apart, i do get very annoyed with these bleeding hearts who sympathise solely with the guy in debt, whereas the landlord is almost as much a victim

i wonder if this chap tried to find work down his local carwash or any other such relatively menial job?

you've probably been hard up as indeed have i .... for myself, i worked evenings as a minicab driver to pay the housekeeping and my then wife also worked ..... were we living in a smart house? ..... not unless you think a 1.5 bedroom basement flat in what was then very scruffy and un-chic shepherds bush counts as such

Mini cab Driver MENIAL JOB!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

not up here in Yorkshire, they are very well off and considered to be higher middle class.

What planet are you on Cyners, you Silly Little Billy.

try early/mid-70s in shepherds bush!
that said, some of the trips were pretty memorable though some of them best forgotten
when i started, i didn't even know where scrubs lane was, let alone the north pole!

btw, i certainly worked in a carwash to make some pennies when i was in oz for a couple of years when i was 18/19

One easy solution and I keep repeating it, pay housing benefit direct to the Landlord not the claimant. It couldnt be simpler and would avoid a lot of distress.

IDS is as thick as -hit. He should have know that rent arrears would build up Im even beginning to think the evil man as done it on purpose.

Someone will catch up with him in time though they always do.

pay housing benefit direct to the Landlord not the claimant ........ absolutely!

btw, what do you do when one of your tenants is several months in arrears and is not doing anything to get back in line?

i suspect sticky's SHOCK HORROR story was just an update on the paedophile enquiry, during which 660 people have been arrested

interestingly, though one may ask with some surprise how "none of those arrested is a serving or former MP or member of the government"

Strange tweet up on twitter........

Ross Sharpe ‏@Ross_Shh 3m
Been watching a company called the real good food company. Makes cakes for costa coffee. Keeps dropping. Sideline watch atm

Mick Tarquin Kipper ‏@MickKipper 56s
@Ross_Shh keeps dropping what?? cakes pies?? I used to be a holder of the stock.

If he means fraud I think this goes on at a lot of food companys.

cynic Send an email to cynic View cynic's profile - 16 Jul 2014 15:29 - 43779 of 43781

pay housing benefit direct to the Landlord not the claimant ........ absolutely!

btw, what do you do when one of your tenants is several months in arrears and is not doing anything to get back in line?...........................ends

go round and duff him up.

i pay my bills :-)

but i asked genuinely what you, as a significant landlord, do about tenants who are badly in arrears and doing nothing to get back into line

perhaps you just "go round and duff 'em up"

LOL, in insist that they have housing benefit paid direct to me. Still have that here but its coming to an end I think.

Prevention is better than cure I always ask for 2 references and do check them out to make sure they are not fradulent.

I always ask for a GPs ref if they cant get one I dont entertain them. I accept DSS and never had a problem.

Worst case was a group of 3 students, took the whole Central heating system out plus the boiler, good job ive got 'landlord Insurance'......hope you have, mind I have 24 houses now, I guess for just one who you know its not cost effective.

There's not a lot you can do, other than to just go by the rules and guidelines in the 'debt collecting book'.

What we have generally done is to check out the tenants thoroughly beforehand, give them very neat, clean and tidy properties, with everything in order and working properly. Then we weren't so scared as to whether the property would let or not and could always be more selective as to who we chose to be a tenant.

Oh, I nearly forgot. After only ever using one to start with (only the once) we never used any agents. We utterly believed we could do a far better job ourselves.

my tenants pay me by standing order and as you mentioned, i know them and the parents of one of them so risk is minimal

i happen to know my property is kept well, but i'm sure that all too often you are left with dilaps that are not remotely covered by the 6-week rental deposit

my "posh" rental property is another matter and damn glad i am too ...... my first tenants were a couple of girls in mid/late 20s from very wealthy families, but what a mess they left!
Fortunately the deposit was sufficiently large to cover all the necessary work to put the place back in A1 condition

I never collect a bond. If its been covered by the DSS its a farce trying to get it back.

I just ask for a week up front.

Im covered by my insurance, it is expensive but worth it.

Right off for a bit of trout fishing in the brook.

laters.

Juts a last one cant resist it.........The Coalition Colouring And Activity Book

take it on holiday with you for those moments when you are bored.

http://mikesivier.wordpress.com/2014/07/16/the-coalition-government-colouring-and-activity-book/

cats the Chinese restaurants will round them up for meals no problem .
if you can not pay the rent then they should be kicked out .rent something cheaper

or chop them up and sell the bits to the chinese or indian restaurant or even the local pie shop :-)

Ive come back, it was way too warm absolutely boiling here.

TANKER explain to me how they can find something cheaper??????

Anyway the councils of Britain have a mandatory right to find a homeless family with children a house to stay in overnight. (thats the law)

You do know what happens dont you.......they are put up in high costing Hotel Rooms for days on end at the tax payers expense.

For the third time today IDS should make payment of housing benefit direct to the landlord to avoid this happening in a lot of cases.

@EtonOldBoys we all know IDS is a tool but just look at his shadow!! :0)