Irish and starving

barneyrubble46

Made redundant in 2013, now claiming means tested JSA or is it benefits I always get those two mixed up, anyway its the means tested benefit. I was offered an internship however I cannot take this up as my claim has not been processed yet. I was told it would take at least 4 months, I have no money for food, no money for petrol, I cannot attend hospital for chemo, cannot pay for my prescription. On top of that I am now separated and the inspector is coming to my house next week, after I sent a letter of complaint to Joan Burton. All I want to do is work, and the Internship offered has a firm job offer attached after 3 months. I could really kick the sh...t out of the Welfare sometimes, all because I have separated from my Husband they have stopped my claim until the inspector comes to my house to check I live alone, I mean come on, its not rocket science is it!! Can someone explain to me what to expect from the inspector. more to the point what not to say.

malinheader

If you have no money to live you should go see your local welfare officer used to be employed by the heath board i think, They used be able to issue you a cheque there and then and every week after until your claim is sorted out. Contact your local welfare office to get details because sometimes they have an office in the same building. I would do it as soon as possible as some claims can take 5 or 6 weeks to process and sometimes longer. Hope this helps.

ABajaninCork

You should also apply for a Medical Card/GP Visit card.

Sorry to hear of your troubles, and hope you get it sorted soon...

malinheader

The name of the person you need to see is your community welfare officer. Good luck.

Cushie Butterfield

barneyrubble46 wrote: »

Made redundant in 2013, now claiming means tested JSA or is it benefits I always get those two mixed up, anyway its the means tested benefit. I was offered an internship however I cannot take this up as my claim has not been processed yet. I was told it would take at least 4 months, I have no money for food, no money for petrol, I cannot attend hospital for chemo, cannot pay for my prescription. On top of that I am now separated and the inspector is coming to my house next week, after I sent a letter of complaint to Joan Burton. All I want to do is work, and the Internship offered has a firm job offer attached after 3 months. I could really kick the sh...t out of the Welfare sometimes, all because I have separated from my Husband they have stopped my claim until the inspector comes to my house to check I live alone, I mean come on, its not rocket science is it!! Can someone explain to me what to expect from the inspector. more to the point what not to say.

Firstly to answer your question the DSP inspector just has to be satisfied that you are who you say you are & that you live where you say you live. You will need to show photo id e.g. passport/driver's licence & proof of address e.g. tenacy agreement/mortgage agreement/bank statements.

You really need to speak to your local DSP representative (formally Community Welfare Officer). YOu can find your nearest one here: http://www.welfare.ie/en/Pages/otheroffice/community-welfare-office-contact.aspx

If you are ill are you capable of work at the moment? Chemo can be debilitating & usually patients would have to take time off work during treatment, or if unemployed claim an illness related payment. If not entitled to Illness Benefit you should be applying for Supplementary Welfare Allowance & not Jobseeker's Allowance if you're not available for work. The DSP repreasentative is the person you have to see to apply for SWA.

As regards travel to your chemo you should contact the cancer liason nurse in whatever hospital you attend who should be able to liase with their social work department to make some transport arrangements fo as you can attend for your chemo sessions.

Or you could contact the Irish Cancer Society http://www.cancer.ie/about-us/contact They can also provide some financial support plus they also have two dedicated transport programmes: Care to Drive, where trained drivers can give you a lift to your treatment, and Travel2Care, which helps with the costs of transport. Find out more at the following links:

• Care to Drive
• Travel2Care

lulu1

OP I cant understand how you have been left in this situation in this day and age. I am sure if you go and see your local community welfare officer they will give you enough to tide you over until your claim comes through.