Universal Credit Bank Reviews: Frequently Asked Questions

deelee

@Rosie_Scope Thanks for the information about Universal Credit Bank reviews. I wanted to ask you about something related to this. Yesterday I heard on the news that from April 2025 there will be new mandatory 6 month reviews done for all UC claimants where they will want to ask about any new changes in circumstances - such as rent going up or down or moving or starting a job or savings changed or health changes. Will they contact us to do this or will we need to do this every 6 months? Will this be for all UC claimants as well as those who do not have to look for work and also get PIP? I have not had a review since Dec 2019 and my savings became quite depleted due to taxi fares to scans and hospital visits and dentist bills specialised foods as well as new clothing due to weight loss.

My landlord also now wants me to pay rent up front for 6 months and this will seriously deplete my savings. It is really hard not to spend savings when you have no choice. My rent will be going up at the April so I will need to notify them of this and as well as my savings. Any advice would be welcome from anyone :)

anisty

Lol i see i posted earlier on this thread - omg i am like a different person now! Was so naieve then! Have learned a lot since.

My son's review (that actually never happened as it was cancelled 2 hours AFTER it was supposed to happen) has turned into a limbo land as the Swindon team was wrong in telling me to update capital on the journal.

That one wrong action led to a wrongly closed claim, no journal, no ability to upload statements. No claim recalculation.

We are going the slow postal paper route and so far nothing is happening.

These reviews are dual purpose: to find undeclared capital and to find claimants who spend too long outside of the UK to maintain eligibility to claim.

It is a separate team to the job centre staff (based at Polaris House, Swindon) so if you do have questions about your capital (as i did) wait to get it sorted out on your review call. My journal entry update triggered my local JC to get involved which has prevented the review team from doing its work at all - that is why my review call was cancelled. They cannot do reviews on closed claims

Andi66

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/comment/981126#Comment_981126

With PayPal I only use it to buy things nothing else. There is no statement or anything. Would a screenshot do.i yet to migrate but just asking for when I do

Kimi87

All PayPal accounts have statements:

https://www.paypal.com/uk/cshelp/article/how-do-i-view-and-download-statements-and-reports-help145

If PP statements are asked for then it has to be formal statements not screenshots.

SM9346

Hi everyone, 

Again I’m worrying about Bank Statements. I’d thought I’d ask a few questions about it. If anyone knows the answers too. 

1. When I do the form to move over to UC from ESA. Do you get asked for bank statements for ID like online or if you have to go to job centre?
2. When a review does happen down the line or even years away. How long do you get asked for statements for and what type of questions do they ask?
3. Do they go through every transaction like I’ve seen elsewhere?
4. I’ve seen elsewhere people have been asked for statements from start of claim to even before the start of claim? 
   

I’ll never be over £6k at anytime like I wasn’t on ESA as I just paid my bills and just spent a lot each month. I’ll do the same probably while I move over to UC. So I’m not bothered about that at all. Just some of the things I’ve mentioned I’ve seen elsewhere online and with myself suffering from severe anxiety disorder. It’s making me worry about the future when/if these things do happen. My mind has been on this subject a lot and I feel it’s taking over my life. Can someone tell me if I’m overreacting to everything?

worried33

1 - On my actual migration, they accepted my savings declaration and no statements were asked for.
2 - I cant answer this from experience but I have read the typical period is 4 months, but bear in mind they can ask for longer if they think is necessary. I had a review very recently, but this wasnt a random review which is what this subject is about, mine was triggered by declaring savings over 6k so a different type of review, and they asked for 3 months of statements.
3 - In my case I didnt get questioned at all about transactions, but as I said mine wasnt a random review, I had no follow up appointment after handing over documents. Just a DM looked at it.
4 - As I said in number 2, there is no assurances how much evidence you will be asked to provide.

SM9346

Thanks for the reply @worried33. I get worked up upset over these things hence all the questions.

SM9346

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/comment/996329#Comment_996329

Thanks Danny. I’ll never be over £6000 anyway so that’s good to know!

LanaOOAK

I just want to know how long the review can take....I had a phone interview on March 4th...I sent all the documents that were asked. It was more than a week ago and all this time I am in a stress.😫

Kimi87

There isn't a standard time frame, it seems to vary for all of us that have been through one.

LanaOOAK

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/comment/996745#Comment_996745

So you think that a few weeks for the review is normal?

egister

The limits of £6000 and £16000 are specifically used to drive the disabled into poverty, sucking out their savings. I don't think that with the same disease a person with savings of £5000 suffers more than with £17000.

anisty

The reviews where they go back years are only for claims with higher undeclared balances. They then need to go right back to the point where capital was under 6k. And work out the overpayment on every subsequent month.

My son's case is one such. I am the appointee and had correctly declared all his building society savings on time.

What i had failed to do was report unspent money in his current account each month. I just never knew that counted as it fluctuated up and down.

So - every month right back to 2019, there will be £4.35 at least due. Some months more. There have been months he had had 2k there undeclared. *and that should have been added to his declared savings

However, so far, they still have not been in touch to request statements! 3 months and haven't heard a thing but for an agent calling me to confirm they have everything i sent uploaded to their system. I suspect if i had not mentioned my error to them, they wouldn't have picked it up.

But, i'd rather get this paid off and cleared properly. I think i might just have had the £50 late capital reporting fine had i kept quiet. They are in no rush to get the money back, that's for sure!

julesluk65

hi, i am due my review tomorrow after i got a message yesterday telling me so, i started claiming uc in 2020 after no longer working, i can no longer work due to health issues ect, so i get lcwra is it? lol on top of my normal uc, now i moved in with an old friend of mine back in 2017 after i broke up with my ex, i have my own bedroom and also use of rest of house ect, we have never done a tenancy agreement as were friends as i say have been for around 30 yrs, i pay them 250 a month towards bills ect and also buy my own food i never did and never prob would claim housing benefit for the rent i pay, i also get pip so with what i have coming in i can afford to pay £250 a month myself and also my own food, im just worried that when i have my review there might start asking for tenancy agreements ect im a nervous wreck at moment plz any help

Albus_Scope

Hey @julesluk65 please try not to worry. I had a review a while back and I live with my sister and pay her regular rent, but dont have any kind of agreement written down. I just explained it was rent money and they were ok with it.

julesluk65

hi thank you for information great help :) did their get in touch with your sister or ought to confirm it ect

julesluk65

did my review on 28th march uploaded passport me holding plus 4 months bank statements as asked but was then asked yesterday to upload pic of my passport showing both pages which i did but cant understand why had to do that again?

Kimi87

Possibly they were not satisfied with the first photo.

julesluk65

@Kimi87 yea thats what was thinking its just so annoying as i already suffer from terrible anxiety also bipolar, and this is making me quite poorly all the waiting around, as dont know how long a review takes

julesluk65

@Albus_Scope hi sorry didnt know how to tag people in a reply ect lol, anyway just quick question really from the last post u replied too, about paying rent to a friend or in your case sister, did their speak to your sister about it ect?