Social Welfare and moving Address

[johnd]

I am writing this on behalf of a young friend. She is a lone parent and receiving a reduced payment as she has a part time job also. Recently she moved address and didn't not imform Social Welfare on time. A letter was sent to her previous address but she did not receive it and as a result her payment were stopped.

Social Welfare directed her to her new local office but they cannot tell her when she will receive her payments. They have told her payment cannot any longer be made through her bank account and has to be paid throught the Post Offive because of fraud - I thought this rule only applied to Jobseekers? They also demanded her passport even though she brought her driving licence and they are also looking for a six months bank statement. They bank cannot guanantee this in the seven days demanded! Now, they wont even any the phone to her queries!

Can anyone give me any help so I can pass it on to her - she's very upset
and worried.

 

[Welfarite]

The option to get payment through the bank has been withdrawn for all SW payments; to combat persons claiming weekly benefits while not living in the state. She is being put throught the mill because changing address without informing them is a major no-no. It tends to alert SW to iclosely investigate the claimant's circumstances. They want the passport to check her movements in and out of country. She should have got a statement fromt he bank in normalk circumstances and so it shouldn't be a problem to produce it. all this would have been avoided if she had told them she was moving address. Why did she not do so?

 

[johnd]

Thanks Welfarite, she just forgot it - was 3 weeks ago she moved and had to contact other services about bills etc and simply forgot. Doesn't help that her new home is in the same general area, but different Welfare Offfice. She's Irish so how would her passport track her movements in and out of the country. You are allowed to go on holiday even if you are a Lone Parent? I did underatand that payment in the PO only did only apply to jobseekers benefit/allowance. I know pensioners/widows can receive payment throught their bank account still because of security risks or because PO are closing down. I'm simply asking for her because they will not answer their phones and she is upset.