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[Misc] universal credit



bha100

bha100

Active member
Aug 25, 2011
898
Regarding costing up 55p a minute

Is that some kind of fake news, even the news readers have referred to it as a premium rate number which it's not
I checked to see what the number was and it's 0345 600 0723.

I know for a fact that on inclusive landline and mobile call plans all 03 numbers are included and if's not up to 9p a minute + call setup fee on a landline, as for payg mobile i have a giffgaff one for emergencies and calls to 03 numbers are 15p a minute, i don't believe there is any payg mobile that has a call charge of 55p miniute
 






clippedgull

clippedgull

Hotdogs, extra onions
Aug 11, 2003
20,789
Near Ducks, Geese, and Seagulls
bha100 said:
Regarding costing up 55p a minute

Is that some kind of fake news, even the news readers have referred to it as a premium rate number which it's not
I checked to see what the number was and it's 0345 600 0723.

I know for a fact that on inclusive landline and mobile call plans all 03 numbers are included and if's not up to 9p a minute + call setup fee on a landline, as for payg mobile i have a giffgaff one for emergencies and calls to 03 numbers are 15p a minute, i don't believe there is any payg mobile that has a call charge of 55p miniute
Click to expand...

It's up to 55p a minute if you have exceeded any call plans you may have.

Apart from that the average wait time is over 30 minutes per call.

to finalise...... the tories have now abolished the charge and it will become a free 0800 number.
 


Eeyore

Eeyore

Colonel Hee-Haw of Queen's Park
NSC Patron
Apr 5, 2014
23,514
Most of the dailys make reference to it being the most that could be charged in their articles.

Anyway at 15p a minute, for the time I used to spend speaking to a number of poorly trained operatives as a result of UC's own errors, a normal call would often cost a fiver regardless.
 


bha100

bha100

Active member
Aug 25, 2011
898
clippedgull said:
It's up to 55p a minute if you have exceeded any call plans you may have.

Apart from that the average wait time is over 30 minutes per call.

to finalise...... the tories have now abolished the charge and it will become a free 0800 number.
Click to expand...

Sleight of hand story though, should of made it freephone from the start.
 






bha100

bha100

Active member
Aug 25, 2011
898
Brighton Lines said:
Most of the dailys make reference to it being the most that could be charged in their articles.

Anyway at 15p a minute, for the time I used to spend speaking to a number of poorly trained operatives as a result of UC's own errors, a normal call would often cost a fiver regardless.
Click to expand...

When you got connected why didn't you ask to be called back?
 


Eeyore

Eeyore

Colonel Hee-Haw of Queen's Park
NSC Patron
Apr 5, 2014
23,514
bha100 said:
When you got connected why didn't you ask to be called back?
Click to expand...

That wasn't an option that was openly made known to callers. Although it wouldn't be much help for someone queuing for twenty minutes.
 




Stat Brother

Stat Brother

Well-known member
NSC Patron
Jul 11, 2003
73,647
West west west Sussex
DMa_1CrWsAAUjKr.jpg
 




Eeyore

Eeyore

Colonel Hee-Haw of Queen's Park
NSC Patron
Apr 5, 2014
23,514
BensGrandad said:
Is it not possible to contact them on line or via e mail?
Click to expand...

Yes. But it's difficult enough to get human beings to understand in live conversation let alone go down that route. Honestly, they are a nightmare to deal with.

The tip of the iceberg of my dealings with them was when they denied me nearly £1000 that I was legally entitled to on the basis that a compensatory payment I received from a tribunal was 'income'. I told them it was capital and did not affect my entitlement. The person on the end of the phone treated me like I was a total numpty. It was when I referred them to their own rules, as stated on their web pages, that it was handed to someone else and altered in my favour.

Trust me, they are a nightmare. What pisses me off is knowing that a lot of people not as savvy as me will have missed out on entitlements due to gross incompetence at the DWP.
 




B

BensGrandad

New member
Jul 13, 2003
72,015
Haywards Heath
Perhaps we are fortunate in that we only get our statutory state pension so I cannot see it affecting us but I must admit I havent even considered that it might.


I have just checked with Money Advice Service GB and is says that it is only a benefit paid to low paid workers and unemployed so wont affect me. What it does say however is that when the phone is answered ask them to ring you back as you could be put on hold for up to 45 mins.
 
Last edited:


GT49er

GT49er

Well-known member
Feb 1, 2009
46,711
Gloucester
BensGrandad said:
Perhaps we are fortunate in that we only get our statutory state pension so I cannot see it affecting us but I must admit I havent even considered that it might.


I have just checked with Money Advice Service GB and is says that it is only a benefit paid to low paid workers and unemployed so wont affect me. What it does say however is that when the phone is answered ask them to ring you back as you could be put on hold for up to 45 mins.
Click to expand...
Chances are though, that you'll actually have to wait 45 minutes to speak to a human being to ask them to phone you back!

Anyway, the government have now, albeit much too late, made it free to call. No 'sleight of hand' that, as someone else claimed - just that they f**ked it up first time around, being too stupid to realise that the world outside their little bubble completely understands that 'We are receiving an exceptional volume of calls at the moment' is smarmy b^stard make-a-load-of-money-regardless business management talk for 'We haven't employed nearly enough people to man this call centre because we don't want to spend the money on their wages'.
 


Yoda

Yoda

English & European
Mar 1, 2004
10,056
Worthing, West Sussex, United Kingdom
Brighton Lines said:
Yes. But it's difficult enough to get human beings to understand in live conversation let alone go down that route. Honestly, they are a nightmare to deal with.

The tip of the iceberg of my dealings with them was when they denied me nearly £1000 that I was legally entitled to on the basis that a compensatory payment I received from a tribunal was 'income'. I told them it was capital and did not affect my entitlement. The person on the end of the phone treated me like I was a total numpty. It was when I referred them to their own rules, as stated on their web pages, that it was handed to someone else and altered in my favour.

Trust me, they are a nightmare. What pisses me off is knowing that a lot of people not as savvy as me will have missed out on entitlements due to gross incompetence at the DWP.
Click to expand...

Benefit processing offices should never have been centralised in the first place. When I worked at Worthing we had IS & JSA for just West Sussex, Bognor did IB. After a few years we took on Hove. Then IB moved from Bognor to Worthing. I bailed out see what was happening as we were soon to take the rest of Sussex (all this with only a handful of extra staff, way less than was already doing it). I believe to soon went somewhere up north but with a greater volume of work compared to the staffing levels as the new centre would also take on Surrey or Kent as well as Sussex.

All the time it was at Worthing we were just keeping our heads above water in terms of getting claims & changes processed within two weeks so I'm not surprised at the length of time people are having to wait now as could see it happening from the inside.
 


T

turienzo's lovechild

New member
Oct 25, 2003
23,964
as a benefits adviser I can confirm that Universal Credit has to be in the "top 5" monumental **** ups created by this government. Absolutely awful in almost every respect

glad they've made it a freephone number, but that was just one aspect of this absolute mess
 


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