Help!! Need to change my life!!!

maura said:
Sorry, must have misread the above. Thought the op wanted advice.
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Maura you are missing a serious point here, plus you have embarrassed youself with your apparent indifference to the scandal of these payouts.
 
+1
 
deedee80 said:
Excuse my ignorance but why do people think this is a wind up? Do people think this sort of thing does not go on? I can assure you it does.
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Agree wholeheartedly, I get paid 25,550 per annum to work a full weeks work, I pay health insurance, I need a car (rural) so pay car tax, insurance, upkeep. House insurance, TV licence a pension levy, a tax levy, PRSI, PAYE, widows and orphans, pension, union. I work damn hard dealing with the public every day on my feet.

Mark my words this country (and bear this in mind because of out and out greed. Blatent shocking disgusting karma will get you greed) will become like the UK where everyone sits at home on their big behinds and scoops up the money every week paid for by a small minority of working folk. Do the maths on my salary. I'm considering the getting up at 10:30 Dallas, Dr. Phil, Oprah and then the Channel 4 western in the afternoon lifestyle myself, all I have to do is get let go from the public sector...bring it on
 
jojo31 said:
I desprately want to get away from renting as getting a rent supplement is holding me back from working more
Jo.
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I think this is indicative of something positive in the OP's intentions.

Do none of you feel that a person came looking for advice, not a lecture, nor the judgement of some clucking old biddies ?

And before anyone starts, I pay taxes too. And am a debt-free saver. And I agree with the sentiments of many here that we cannot afford the largesse.

Luckily for me though, I have enough self-control to start a new thread on that. Not hound people away who ostensibly seem at least to have a work ethic.

I'm only sorry that I can't offer advice on the issues the OP raised. In the unlikely event she'll be back again to read it.
 
Yes she may have positive intentions. But there not legal ones.

She's not entitled to FIS or BTWA. Even without the FIS and the BTWA being taken into consideration, with her wages, loan parents and maintenance she wouldn't even be entitled to any rent allowance.

So yes i will lecture, judge and jump up and down in protest that if all that income is "real" ,i still cant believe she is actually claiming all that and that no one has cottoned on to that she shouldn't be - and i blame the goverment more than i blame her)

And i dont care who it upsets and it may be childish...but it's just not fair. It not fair to me it's not fair to you, and it not fair to everyone in ireland that is facing tax rises left right and centre, that will effect everyone who has mortgages, bills and a family to look after, or just themselves to look after. That money that she and plenty of others are claiming illegally could be put to better use, and we need it now more than ever. Just taking away her extra money that she is claiming and not entitled to could amount to thousands of euros, now times that by the all the people that are claiming what they are not entitled to. Imagine what we could do with that money.
 
Does anyone know what someone in the op's position would legally be entitled to? Would be interested ...
 
So:
Is it the case that the information given is factually incorrect, or that this is actually fraudulent activity?

Very interesting thread

Nicola
 
What she should be getting......... if she was only claiming what she's entitled to:

Income per week:

wages €250.00
OPF €204.55
Main € 84.77 ( you disregars the first €95.23 )

Full rate OPF for single parent with 2 children is €256.30, you are allowed to earn €146.50 for every euro you earn over that 50c will be taken away from payment so..... 250 - 146.50 = 103.50. Divide by 2 is 51.75. So 256.30 - 51.75 gives us the OPF amount of 204.55

Her total income to be assessed for rent allowance is €539.32

For rent allowance you take away the basic social welfare rate for her and her 2 children........ 539.32 - 204.30 - 26.00 - 26.00 = 283.02

Her rent is 1100 per month so 1100 x 12 / 52 = 253.85 a week

She has 283.03 left over every week her rent is less than that meaning she is not entitled to any rent allowance.

****ty i know it's not easy trying to work with 2 children, by i did it without scamming the system why shouldn't everyone else.
 

+1

Samanthajane thanks for taking the time to do the 'honest claim' maths...
 
As long as he wasn't living in her current accommdation then she would still be entitled to OPF. A partner weather it's the childrens father or a new partner is allowed to stay over for a max of 3 nights a week.

I'm sure there are people that stick to the 3 night a week limit but i'm sure there are more that dont, but it is very hard to catch people out. Unless they have proof over a certain period of time there;s nothing the social welfare can do.

In order to prove without doubt that someone else is living full time with you, you'd have to employ someone to watch the house over a period of weeks, just watching for 1 week ( still wages for someone to actually do this ) proves nothing, there are a number of excuses you can use, He got locked out had to stay over, car broke down had to stay over, I wasn't well that week had to stay over ect ect the list goes on and on.

I know someone in this very situation with the father of her 3 kids, she's claiming everything, and she has been reported a number of times, everytime social welfare have "investigated" they have never been able to prove he lives there full time. His personal belonging are explained away by him staying there at weekends.

So how do you catch out the people that are claiming illegally? As much as i hate the idea and i'm sure many others do it looks like there is nothing we can do about it, reporting them it a waste of time.
 
The incentive to lie and pretend that you are living apart is being provided by the state.
The OP is a single parent and is "earning/claiming" over €47,000.00 a year. Boyfriend/father moves in, earning average industrial wage of €30,000(net) down €17,000 a year and another person being supported. The claimant would also need an excellent education and extensive work experience to be in with any chance of earning near this of their own accord!
 
Jaybird i would agree with you 100% if the partner is the father of the children. Not sure what i think should be done if the partner is not the father....

From my experience when i started dating again after being left to bring up 2 children on my own, and yes i was claiming OPF and my b/f after a few months into the relationship was staying over at the weekends, is it reasonable to say he was responsible for supporting my children that he has no biological connection with at all. Once he has moved in full time, you shouldn't be entitled to OPF ( as the rules state, so the goverment got 1 thing right ) and when he moved in i no longer claimed. Should there be a time limit on this.........i dont know, how can you put a timer when every relationship is different.

If you have a rule that once you start dating again you lose your benefits because your not single anymore ( although the defination of single is not married when your filling out forms ) you going to make even more single parents stay on benefits.

If that was the case for me i would still be today claiming all the benefits ( only what i was entitled to ) I would of got less once i returned to work when my daughter was 6 months old, but i still would of been entitled to something. Only because of meeting another man did we start dating that turned into a relationship where we eventually moved in together, started a business, brought a house ( didn't live happy ever after ) but anyway the point is i wasn't claiming anything from the state, if i wasn't given that chance in the first place i wouldn't be where i am today.

Even though i am enraged by the income the OP is claiming, i dont think there is enough to help "real" single parents get back to work. Rents are so high in dublin and also childcare is just a stupid amount of money, but you have to pay it...as long as people pay the money the prices wont fall, if you dont have childcare you cant work you have no money coming in. ( the rule about once you earn €60 everything you earn after that goes towards your rent isn't realistic, who can work even part time and find a childminder for €60 these days, that whole part has to be restructured, the council have a new scheme now which i think will help but you still need more, the council scheme has a few rules that to me are a bit on the stupid side, but at least it's a start )

The figures for single parents going back to work are a disgrace but it's not always the singe parents fault. The recession will lower rents which is a good thing but also jobs are harder to get cause so many people are looking for work. It's a catch 22 situation. As an employer who would you perfer.... a single parent that might have to take time off at short notice cause the child is sick or someone with no children that wont have that problem, employers now have their pick of who they want to employ.

In a strange way i do feel for the OP, (yeah even after all my ranting and raving) I of all people know how hard it is, and also the desire to own your own propery, She obviously at one point was working 20 hours or more of she never would of been award them to begin with, since her hours have dropped she has just not informed them and continued to claim them. I wonder how long that has been going on for. And as for the rent allownace i'm just stumped..... because no matter what she should never of been given that in the first place.
 
Maybe if the government treated co-habiting couples for tax purposes the way they do for social welfare payments then people would come clean about living together and they wouldn't be fraudulently claiming benefits. It is a catch 22 for many who go into new relationships, they cannot afford to live together because she loses her lpa, he cannot claim for her on his taxes etc. I think if all social welfare/tax etc were linked then fraud would be picked up quicker, all couples should have married allowances when living together and so on.
 
I agree that the system is to blame and if this poster is for real I wish I knew how she was managing it. I am single with 2 children under 18 and the only way I can afford a house is by sharing with my 22 yr old daughter who has been recently been made unemployed. I receive €280 pw incl fuel allow and rent allowance of €157. My rent is €250 pw and my daughter is receiving €57. I think this is more than reasonable. I get no maintaince so that is my total income. I have recently started dating and he does stay over, maybe more than 3 nights some weeks but less another week. He does contribute towards food etc but only in so far as he uses. We have discussed moving in together but having failed in relationships twice i'm relucant so for now no plans. He's not the kids dad so I don't think he should have to support them. The Government should chase down deliquent fathers and force them to pay something towards their childrens upkeep. My ex is working cash in hand, earning approx €700 pw plus his dole.
I do think the op should curtail her expenses,
€80 pm for ntl is crazy, she must have all the channels. I do have internet but thats it and thats because i'm studying from home so I can hopefully move on.
 
gamzie wrote:
I get no maintaince
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My ex is working cash in hand, earning approx €700 pw plus his dole. The Government should chase down deliquent fathers and force them to pay something towards their childrens upkeep.
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Well, why don't you report him so?
 
it wouldn't change anything, he has said he would rather stop work than give me a penny, at least this way he sometimes gives the kids a pair of trainers or something sim, they still need to love their dad and thats wots important.
I have seriously thought of reporting him and I do have proof but at the end of the day, apart from finances ,will it do the children any good? His son who is 14 hates him which i feel is sad, his daughter(12)plays him good,she gets her nikes, i hate that, but kids will be, ya?
however I am seriously considering reporting him, any advice would be great.
by the way, i'm more than capable of changing my life but the government doesn't allow us. I'm a recent graduate and I can't find work, my age works against me i reckon. i've even gone for a mac job!!! i'm not proud in any way
 
Reporting possible fraud
The Central Control Section of the Department of Social and Family Affairs accepts reports of possible fraud offered by members of the public in relation to the Department’s schemes.
Reports are accepted by email, phone or in writing. All reports are dealt with in confidence. A member of the public may give details anonymously.
Contact Details:
By email: central.control@welfare.ie
By phone: (01) 704 3000, ask for Central Control Section,
By Post: Central Control Division, Shannon Lodge, Carrick-on-Shannon, Co Leitrim.
 
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