Sanctioned for 6 weeks because they didn't have a mobile phone

5th March 2020

From The Poor Side of Life blog

Exposing the unfair treatment of jobseekers, the horrors of Universal Credit, unfair sanctions and heinous treatment of claimants at Ashton under Lyne Jobcentre.

It was then that I spoke to a man that has been sanctioned for not attending an appointment. He had explained to his advisor that he no longer had a mobile phone because he had lost it and asked if they could send him a letter as an alternative to a text message.

The DWP ignored this and sent him a text notifying him of his next appointment. Of course he missed his appointment so now he’s having to cope living off hardship payments, most of which has to go towards paying his family member for food etc whilst he lives with them.

This system is so unfair and unjust, they knew that he wouldn’t see the text but sent it anyway. I remember the good old days when they used to give you your next appointment time face to face, and they used to write it on an appointment card.

Back then the DWP wasn’t a place of hatred and discrimination.

https://thepoorsideof.life/

The way they are implementing sanctions due to people either not having a phone or choosing to be contacted in a form of their own choosing appears to be fishy?

Anyone know the 'legalities' on; being able to choose how you would like to be contacted?

I removed my consent asking to be contacted by letter only. Then got letters saying ''we wrote to you on X date''. But, that letter never arrived. Appears, it dosent seem to matter what form of contact we choose; they will play this game either way?