Burnt by Person Sharing With - Finding New Place after Redundancy

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NeedSomeHelp

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Hi,

Recently I was made redundant from my role and was given a good pay off of several months.

Because I'm entitled to it, I was going to claim JB on the day after being made redundant, however the person I am sharing with who has a son, claimed that if I claimed she would have to evict me.

It seems that she is claiming rent allowance for the full property as a one parent family and taking rent from me in addition which she is not declaring which obviously is fraud, no doubt about that at all. But I'm not here to talk about that.

Basically, I'm horrified by this and want to seek a new place ASAP so I can claim JB which is rightfully mine. However, the problem I have encountered is that nobody on DAFT is going to want to take me if I don't have a job, and this is where I have reached a dead end.

Essentially I:
Stay here and not claim JB
Claim JB and get evicted since I assume SW will think it looks dodgy
Give my notice to who I am sharing with and find somewhere else.

Is there anything I should do or say to help me with point 3? I'm aware that what is going on is unethical, but I'm in a spot of bother here and I need help to get out of it before my money runs out.
 
There is nothing to stop you claiming job seekers benefit as it's not a means tested allowance but based on your PRSI contributions. The fact you are staying with a person claiming means tested benefits is not relevant in your case. I would still be doing my best to get out of there and Good luck with your job hunting.
 
Of course you should claim what you are entitled to and while the circumstances aren't relevant to you claiming this, obviously your landlord is anticipating trouble for her benefits hence her need to get you out before her benefits are cut.
 
Absolutely what is going on with her is not relevant to my claim, no doubt about that at all and there is nothing to stop me claiming from the SW side of things, I know and understand that already.

HOWEVER my issue is that by claiming I will be evicted and moving elsewhere is tricky because no landlord will really take me on if I am unemployed, which essentially leaves me with an issue of going without income till I find work and hoping I do before redundancy money runs out, which isn't fair on me.

Or is there something I could say do to Landlord to take me? Almost all places I speak about on DAFT want people employed etc.
 
Slow down please !

1. You must claim your JSB now.
You taking your due JSB is of nil relevance to either her or her landlord , it is completely separate from any shuffling she may be at.
There is no linkage twix you claiming JSB and other shuffling.
There is NIL need for you to tell her/Landlord that you are presently on JSB .
There is absolutely NIL reason for social welfare to see anything dodgy from you.(I do not understand your concern?)

Am I wrong ?
 
She is of the opinion that:

1) If I claim JB, it will flag up on SW computer that someone else is living with her, and she is claiming one parent family RS for €1250.
2) If this happens her RS would be stopped because it would be obvious that there is more than one person living there.
3) This would make SW believe I am paying rent, therefore she is commuting SW fraud by claiming €1250 when she should only claim €1250 - €600 she is getting from me.
4) If this happened she said she would evict me straight away, which would lead me with nowhere to go since it would harm her income and she may be convicted of fraud.

I agree there is no penalty for me from SW and I am doing nothing wrong, but I cannot risk her evicting me unless I have somewhere to go first.
 
Forget her opinion, she obviously has no regard for your situation. Claim your entitlements, don't tell her, and find somewhere else to live asap.
 
Leo, that's great in theory, but in practice not so much.

What worries me is that I claim say today, they figure out next week that she is carrying out fraud, she kicks me out, I have nowhere to go and I'm effectively out on the streets. Obviously I am not going to report her until I get out, but SW will suspect something from the moment they process my claim, and it's foolish of me to claim before I have somewhere safe to go?

I've rang around a few places on DAFT and they all want someone employed. Cash is not the problem, lack of employment is a big barrier to me moving.
 
NeedSomeHelp,

SW won,t find out too quickly , they have nil reason to automatically check.

Remember = If you don,t get your DUE JSB , that would be a red flag in SW!
You now have some funds so maybe.
1. Give yourself a set time to find work.
2. Claim your JSB now.Do not say you have it to her or landlord.
3. She will be caught eventually.
4. Keep looking for accomadation.

Doing nothing is not a medium term option.
You do not want to end up using your savings and still on the street in some months.

Go with Leo,s advice.
And keep what you are doing to yourself !
 
I was made redundant just over three weeks ago but only got my P45 last week (because my final payment was made after my redundancy date) ( could claim on Monday.

But you really think they won't check that someone here was not already claiming some kind of SW when they process my claim? As far as SW know she is only person here and registered living here, the mere presence of my name on the address means that is incorrect.

I was suggested elsewhere if SW came knocking just to say that I am staying there free, but I don't want to do that because basically that makes me implicit in it I believe?
 
I do not think SW are waiting to cross reference every claim.
Can you not (to give your head peace) tell them a new address eg married brothers address and that sorts that until you get work , which I hope you do.
 
They want proof of address to make a claim, so that is a non starter.

I'm originally a UK Citizen who moved over here about 8 years ago, so my family are all based in the UK, else I'd have just moved in with family for a short while since that would solve everything.
 
You either going to have to make your claim for job seekers benefit or otherwise move out when there is no absolute need for you to. Try searching for cheap hostel maybe digs while you looking around for a new job.

The first thing I would be doing is reporting this landlady. She doesn't give two hoots about you as long as she has the rent off you every month. I thought social welfare did regular checks to stamp out this fraud. Then again with the rental market the way it is, It is not surprising people are going to any resort in their effort to try and secure accommodation.
 
Do you have any proof of address? It does not require her interference at all. You simply need evidence that you live there (i.e. that another party sends stuff by post to you), the primary purpose of that information is not fraud investigation. You are entitled to claim and she is not entitled to simply kick you out unceremoniously. You are actively seeking both a new place to live and a new job. That is where your focus needs to be - not on what her nefarious, paltry schemes are. As you've already stated, you are planning to inform them of her illegal behaviour. That is your only involvement in her scheme.

The fact that you are living there does not in itself constitute proof of her scheme, it only points to a likelihood.
 
I have plenty of proof of address here, phone bill, bank statement etc.

I looked at hostels but I have a lot of stuff and having somewhere to store it is going to be hard and I wouldn't want to leave it all in a dorm to be honest.

I know that she is not entitled to kick me out but at the same time she has gave off the impression I might be severely intimidated if I put up any kind of fight.

If I could claim JB and I knew they wouldn't almost straight away stop her cash which would lead her to turn on me aggressively or in an intimidating way, I'd have claimed already.

My point is I cannot risk that scenario and risk damage to or theft of my property.
 
Ustore it will rent you storage unit for about 30 euros a month (no connection, just ran a quick quote on their site)

Why are you trying to protect someone who is effectively preventing you from protecting yourself financially? Incidentally a P45 is not a barrier to starting a claim, you should have gone in 3 weeks ago when you were made redundant. I also think it will take some time before they connect the address to the two people, most likely they will only investigate after you tell them what has been going on.

As for finding a new place to live, are you looking to rent a room again or find a property to rent yourself? When it comes to your employment status dont be so up front with any potential landlord. I certainly wouldnt be announcing on the phone before you have seen the place that you are unemployed. If they ask what you do then tell them I am an engineer, doctor, fire eater! Whatever you are trained in (dont lie). Check the place out and if you find a place that suits you wait and see what they ask for, then decide how to handle things going forward. If employment becomes a barrier at this point then you can deal with it. You have a redundancy lump sum and could possible offer an extra couple of months rent up front. With a bit of luck you might even be able to tell them you are starting a new job in a couple of weeks!!

Start making your plans and start working on them and stop worrying about someone who is defrauding the system.
 
Thanks for the tip on storage, that may come in very handy.

I think the chances of them suspecting something are pretty low as well, but I worry that if on the off-chance it does happen, it will light a spark here at any moment and it will be like a bomb going off.

I'm looking to rent a room, nothing flashy, just want a private room which is in an area not riddled with crime and access to full kitchen and laundry facilities. Everything else can wait until I have a new job so I wouldn't be dealing with landlords, but with people I'd be sharing with.

However the discussions with the majority of places I have seen or inquired about in the last week have had HUGE amounts of other people interested and viewing and they simply are never going to pick an unemployed person over someone who is in a steady job and even if I hide it, it's going to be obvious by my comings and goings I am not working. Most places are asking for references upfront at viewings and in the ads too.
 
Good advice above. You seem to have a marked reluctance to accept or take the advice, perhaps it the difficult situation you're in not allowing you see the woods from the trees?

Anyway, I am a little confused, what exactly is the status of your current rental? The person you are sharing with has leased the house under social welfare (so in agreement with her landlord)? She is then subletting to you without social welfare or, presumably, the landlord knowing? Does she even have a right to evict you, or is that the landlord can evict her for non compliance with the lease as she appears to be subletting? Perhaps he knows and is facilitating it? Have you ever met the landlord or seen him in the house?

Why would you not simply hold your ground until you get yourself sorted? I doubt if you held your ground she would resort to dirty tactics as you would then certainly report her? Hold your ground until you get sorted, ensure you get your full entitlements and don't allow yourself to be bullied. Talk to the guards if/as needed if you feel threatened.
 
Judging by her reaction when I mentioned I was redundant and that therefore I would sign on, it was fairly intimidating, it's clear ell she cares about in this situation is money and little other than that. She claims technically I do not live here so therefore can be evicted.

I have never seen the landlord and I'm not sure if he knows she is subletting. I do know however, that she is getting rent supplement paid to her bank account who she then in turn pays her landlord with. The SW covers here entire rent (single, one parent family rate) and she has not declared to them she is subletting either because obviously they would cut her RS.

I would certainly hold my ground, but I think she is more worried and absolutely petrified that my claim will allow them to find out about her scam and she has told me she will go crazy if she loses that money as she needs it.
 
Is she stupid? If she evicts you then she must know that you will report her and she will get caught anyway?
She must also know that you have started the process of looking around for new accommodation. So she is going to lose your rent anyway.
She obviously doesn't care about you. She wants you to go without your SW entitlements. She wants you gone and for you to keep your mouth shut so she can get another person just like you in your place.
 
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