Claims for Compensation from Centrelink

[StringsAttached]

I had a win!
I didn't even complete (or don't remember completing) a form such as on:
www.welfarerights.org.au/pages/selfhelpforms.aspx

I was financially disadvantaged due to an error by Centrelink, or due to inadequate or incorrect advice by Centrelink. In this case, they say "you may be entitled to compensation."

Story: I am out of Australia as part of my treatment plan. My treating doctor has not found anything suitable for me in Oz and supports what we have found OS. When I first arrived, I didn't know about 'portability'. (Hasn't THAT changed thanks DSPoverseas.

About 7 weeks OS, I heard something about the 13 week thing, which we all call portability now and wrote Centrelink (received receipt number) asking if it applied to me as I was OS for treatment and offered to provide documents as required.

They never replied and when 13 weeks came, we know what happened: no more payments. I was able to return to Oz shortly thereafter thanks to low season air fares, and visit my Dr. and confirm my course of treatment, thus returning OS after my mandatory contribution to global warming and airport taxes.

As an aside, it was good to get the confirmation and advise from my doctor, but the shock and suddenness of the trip, plus the 'surprise' that going 'home' can make your travel insurance policy invalid (Cover-more Insurance AKA Cover-less) did have a negative impact overall on my health & finances.

In July 2011 I wrote Centrelink again (received receipt number) and in February 2012, Centrelink "decided to make a compensation payment" to me. They apologized for the delay, made a lame and irrelevant excuse I don't even want to give any energy to, and told me that they "trust my future dealings with Centrelink will be satisfactory."

I received payment for the time my DSP was suspended, about 2 or 3 weeks.

Some of my thoughts:

• I'm grateful; I have no other income, I'm solo and assetless.
  
• I am surprised that this all happened because of my letter which I sent via online letters.
  
• 'Satisfactory' is a low bar for service standards.
  
• There is no excuse for such a delay and making a lame excuse is bad form such is having no communication from July 2011 until February 2012.

Everyone else - get writing and get receipt numbers!

[rowdy]

Mar 13, 2012 22:13:16 GMT 7 StringsAttached said:

I had a win!
I didn't even complete (or don't remember completing) a form such as on:
www.welfarerights.org.au/pages/selfhelpforms.aspx

I was financially disadvantaged due to an error by Centrelink, or due to inadequate or incorrect advice by Centrelink. In this case, they say "you may be entitled to compensation."

Story: I am out of Australia as part of my treatment plan. My treating doctor has not found anything suitable for me in Oz and supports what we have found OS. When I first arrived, I didn't know about 'portability'. (Hasn't THAT changed thanks DSPoverseas.

About 7 weeks OS, I heard something about the 13 week thing, which we all call portability now and wrote Centrelink (received receipt number) asking if it applied to me as I was OS for treatment and offered to provide documents as required.

They never replied and when 13 weeks came, we know what happened: no more payments. I was able to return to Oz shortly thereafter thanks to low season air fares, and visit my Dr. and confirm my course of treatment, thus returning OS after my mandatory contribution to global warming and airport taxes.

As an aside, it was good to get the confirmation and advise from my doctor, but the shock and suddenness of the trip, plus the 'surprise' that going 'home' can make your travel insurance policy invalid (Cover-more Insurance AKA Cover-less) did have a negative impact overall on my health & finances.

In July 2011 I wrote Centrelink again (received receipt number) and in February 2012, Centrelink "decided to make a compensation payment" to me. They apologized for the delay, made a lame and irrelevant excuse I don't even want to give any energy to, and told me that they "trust my future dealings with Centrelink will be satisfactory."

I received payment for the time my DSP was suspended, about 2 or 3 weeks.

Some of my thoughts:

• I'm grateful; I have no other income, I'm solo and assetless.
  
• I am surprised that this all happened because of my letter which I sent via online letters.
  
• 'Satisfactory' is a low bar for service standards.
  
• There is no excuse for such a delay and making a lame excuse is bad form such is having no communication from July 2011 until February 2012.

Everyone else - get writing and get receipt numbers!

Stringsattached,

Strong advice "get writing and get receipt numbers"

[spaceyone]

Hey Strings, great to hear! Hadn't seen this post before.

I have just realised today that I have had the proof of corruption I had been chasing already in my possession, I just hadn't decoded it properly. Ready to prepare my own case for compensation now too, or advise the buggers I am taking my own legal actions against them.

I can now prove that it was the Job Capacity Assessor who phoned Centrelink and had my DSP application cancelled, on the day I had contacted her to submit more medical information, and advise that more would be following.

She responded, by contacting Centrelink and asking them to make a note that this claim was to be rejected, 15 days before writing and lodging her report of my case.

Now why would she break procedure in that way, and why have Centrelink been so determined to hide the document they created about same event?

Oh that's right. Because she had already entered into an agreement with my employment provider - On-Q HR, that she would not grant it to me, based on the fact I could not support my claim with any medical evidence. On-Q HR were in possession of all the evidence I needed, but had decided that they were not prepared to supply it to the assessor.

Despite all the medical evidence tendered after this phone call, and despite all the problems being created in my life from being placed on Newstart when too sick to work, this one phone call was all that mattered to C/L's decision making process.

The fact that they refuse to allow me access to their account of what was said during it, no longer prevents me from easily demonstrating that it was all done to protect On-Q HR.

The fact that the JCA officer then had to write lies in her report, to support her rejection of all the evidence that was tendered, further supports my case.