Benefits - my council requested full disclosure from my employer for my benefit claim

[peter_m]

Hi,
I have been applying for housing benefit with my co-habiting partner to my local council.
My partner is a full time POST GRADUATE student attending 2 days a week or less at a uni 300 miles away from home to which she is commuting. 100% attendance is not required and most of work required, students submit using the uni's on-line filing system.
The council send me a letter in which is assumed, that she does not live with me and requested to only put my name on the application. Reluctantly I did and I saved copies of council letters in case I will be investigated of benefit fraud. Nevertheless submition of all required documents had a very little result. On the 4 of Dec 2010 I was told that "yes we have all except your Dec pay slip" So the council bought some time for themselves as I do not know anybody who gets payslips and wages at the beginning of the month.
So in January I have submitted my Dec pay slip but what I was ask to bring? Januarys Pay slip. Now 3 months on the council demands from my employer to disclose:
- End of Year financial report,
- My employers bank statements (limited accounts not individuals)
Where do I stand. I've been getting those "ransom notes" from the council for months and my case is nowhere near to be considered.
I need advice and potentially help to be compensated as I am loosing it and no one can make any sense of it including citizen advice.
Also I have now been served with note from my landlord of seeking possession (15,Dec) and legal proceedings started on 17 Jan.

[peter_m]

Barmaid - I thank you for very insightful explanation.

1 - No I do not have great assets in fact ass are less thank 3K
2 - Now this part is or might be tricky, on some occasions I draw out money for float. So drawings or ATM transactions in this case might suggest that i spent that money and the questionnaire will continue, I will have to show detailed transaction for each day of the year to show that ATM saw spent on such and such showing nothing but wasting even more time, that I do not have. In any case those files are kept at my accountants registered office.
3 - Well I know, apparently their "system does not recognise such circumstance". Letter received last year addressed to my partner that in their view does not live here and I quote:
Dear Miss ...(name)
Thank you for sending the app....(..) As you are full time student and currently not resident at (address) you cannot claim HB or CTAX.
Please find enclosed...(..)form which must be completed by your partner (my name) only, so hi must complete this as the claimant.
4 - I wish I was.
5 - they are. Not much I can do, I have promised my landlord that I will be making a good will payments of whatever I can afford but how long they can wait.

[themas]

1. The company's end of year financial report is a document which has to be submitted to Companies House & as such is one which anyone who pays a small fee could see. I can see no reason for you to think the Council should not ask for it if they think it necessary in order to assess your claim.

2. The company's bank statements are another matter. However, if the company's directors decided that they would release them to the Council there is no reason why this could not be done. You are a Director - who are the others? If you really are in a position where your claim should succeed then I suggest you arrange an urgent Directors Meeting & - if the other Directors agree - pass a resolution to release whatever documents the Council require.

3. On the information you give, the Council appears to be completely wrong to treat you are a single claimant. If you have not already made a full statement of the facts of your living arrangements with your girl friend in writing to the Council Housing Benefit Section, then I suggest you do so. Make sure it is delivered (recorded delivery), ask for a reply & keep a copy.

4. You say "all I was doing over the years is to pay debts created when I was a Soul Trader. Now LTD is managing those debts and continue to pay creditors owed amounts." Do you mean you are working for the Ltd Co. & your work is producing sufficient income for the company to be able to pay the debts, but is not producing any profit? If that is the case, the company accounts (which the Council has - quite reasonably in my view - asked for) should support it.

[peter_m]

Dear themas thank you for your post,

1 - Yes and I have no problem submitting them Under Freedom of Information act they have to be made available. Like "Barmaid" correctly pointed out I have to now educate the council what documents has what name and which documents they actually need. Read previous posts re: Audit.
2 - it is in deed. Again I have to than "Barmaid" for clarifying. I will be now able to submit company bank statements providing that I will hide name of each transactions excluding amounts. Should any of my company's clients had a confidentiality clause and discovered that transaction x was made public by me, the Company Director, without their board of directors written consent as a Company Director I am liabile for 2 years imprisonment or fine or both.

3 - yes we have, We have came together number of times and time again. Even physically being HERE was not enough.

4 - Yes it does make profit that is shown in "Abbreviated Accounts". Unfortunately it is only a marginal profit, but nevertheless profit. It is only to the fact that I have chosen to live on a poverty line is that one day my company will be producing profits to pay a lot better wages and give me the ability to have a holiday not every 6 years but at least 2 a year. Take my family ski or such.

This is why people devote their life to build a business so you future generation does not have to go through the same hell.

Thanks all for your contribution. All your input is much appreciated and I hope this topic will be of help to others.

Much Love
peter_m