gee, I wish they'd told me
Although now that I think about it, I should have remembered, I've had dealings with Centrelink in the past. A long time ago, to be sure, but my memory isn't dead yet.
You recall a couple of posts ago, I mentioned that I'd applied for Centrelink assistance to boost my income and an allowance had been granted. Yay me!
Minor panic set in when I checked my bank balance this morning expecting to see a nice little booster in there, but nothing extra showed on my statement.
So I gathered together all the letters I'd so far received from Centrelink, along with every conceivable type of personal identification I could find and took them all to work with me.
After work, I went to Centrelink to see what was going on.
Found out that in order to receive the payments, I had to report all hours worked and income earned.
Right then is when I said I hadn't been told about this step and why the heck not?
The girl agreed I should have been told, but didn't know why I hadn't.
Because I hadn't reported, my allowance had been cancelled. Hmpf!!
We discussed exactly what I had to do, the lovely girl entered proof of sighting all my identifications into her computer, then I raced, (well, walked very fast), all the way home, got out my diary, entered all the hours I'd worked, plus income earned, gulped down a glass of water, grabbed a choc-gingerbread to eat on the way and took off back to Centrelink as fast as my weary little legs could go.
Luckily for me, there's an office right here in Norwood, about 3 minutes walk from work, so I made it well before closing time and everything is now sorted out. Book pages stamped, ID accepted, payments will be in the bank tomorrow.
I'm financially relieved, just in time for Christmas.
You recall a couple of posts ago, I mentioned that I'd applied for Centrelink assistance to boost my income and an allowance had been granted. Yay me!
Minor panic set in when I checked my bank balance this morning expecting to see a nice little booster in there, but nothing extra showed on my statement.
So I gathered together all the letters I'd so far received from Centrelink, along with every conceivable type of personal identification I could find and took them all to work with me.
After work, I went to Centrelink to see what was going on.
Found out that in order to receive the payments, I had to report all hours worked and income earned.
Right then is when I said I hadn't been told about this step and why the heck not?
The girl agreed I should have been told, but didn't know why I hadn't.
Because I hadn't reported, my allowance had been cancelled. Hmpf!!
We discussed exactly what I had to do, the lovely girl entered proof of sighting all my identifications into her computer, then I raced, (well, walked very fast), all the way home, got out my diary, entered all the hours I'd worked, plus income earned, gulped down a glass of water, grabbed a choc-gingerbread to eat on the way and took off back to Centrelink as fast as my weary little legs could go.
Luckily for me, there's an office right here in Norwood, about 3 minutes walk from work, so I made it well before closing time and everything is now sorted out. Book pages stamped, ID accepted, payments will be in the bank tomorrow.
I'm financially relieved, just in time for Christmas.
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Good to hear, River, good to hear. I hope that's a whole truckload of worry now off your shoulders.
ReplyDeleteDealing with centrelink is like jumping through hoops. Flaming hoops. Glad it's sorted.
ReplyDeleteBloody centrelink, it's always one thing or another. One time they had cancelled my payments because their staff member photocopied my birth certificate 'wrong' and they, for some reason forgot to tell me. Had to take it back in there again.
ReplyDeleteJust recently they cancelled my HCC, just because they felt like it? It's like russian roulette "Hmm, who's life should we screw around with today??"
Don't forget - Centrelink exists to launder unpopular government policy. I'm not excusing everything that happens, but many administrative flaws could be prevented if there weren't several departments dictating conflicting advice from their ministers - all while cutting costs so there aren't enough staff to do things properly!
ReplyDeleteAll the same - glad it's sorted out for you!
River, try working with Centrelink and the Department of Ageing at the same time. Instant breakdown and send over a crate of those ginger biscuits, I can't seem to find any.
ReplyDeleteKath; definitely a weight off my shoulders, although I'll still need to watch my spending.
ReplyDeleteVeronica; I hope I don't have to jump too many hoops, my knees won't like it.
MMBB; Similar thing here. I took in all my ID, got it photocopied, then got a letter in the mail saying I had to bring in more ID. Huh? So I took it all in again, but they wanted a driver's licence. I've never had one.....
Red Nomad OZ; just another case of non-communication between departments.
JahTeh; I won't need to work with the department of aging for quite a while, I hope.
Do you mean the Lambertz gingerbreads in chocolate?
They're not easy to find. Can't promise a whole crate. How about just one box? If there's any left.....