Financial hardship in later life

If you worked for an employer you should have been PAYE.

I'm sorry you have worries like this songstress it's not easy to put them aside is it. I think you should try to resolve one thing at a time, consult the CAB and see where to start. I hope you get some help soon.

Urmstongran your friend sounds like a very wise woman.

Callistemon

If you worked for an employer you should have been PAYE.

It's quite possible that when *Songstress had 2 jobs, PAYE wasn't being operated on one of them, possibly because her earnings were below the Class 1 NIC lower limit. Or both employers operated PAYE and both gave her the personal allowance. It's not necessarily HMRC's fault. But *Songstress should take her payslips and correspondence to CAB because there will be someone there who can help her.

Dinahmo
True.
It could even be that two different tax offices could be involved and the bill can be challenged on the grounds that they did not communicate.

Songstress, you could also try these organisations who give free debt advice :

www.stepchange.org/

capuk.org/

Yes, do ring CAB, but remember that at the moment you will not be able to speak face to face with an advisor, it will be over the phone.
An organisation which helps with tax issues is Tax Aid.
taxaid.org.uk/guides/taxpayers
They help taxpayers over 60, who have not been able to solve tax problems with HMRC.

Much as I sympathise, because it all sounds horrendous, you really can't judge your GP by where she went to school and what car she drives!

Not sure what you expect to hear on this site life is crap for loads of people with no solution

If someone scammed you out of money the Bank should pay. I was scammed and the Bank reimbursed me .

Yes please do check with AgeUK and the CAB to see if you can get pension credit. If you are renting then ask your local council for a firm to apply for housing assistance with your rent. Do not under any circumstance think any assistance you apply is a handout. It is what you are entitled to.
As regards the cleaning job offered if you intend to take it ensure you have a written agreement what you have to do fir the agreed fees. If they ask you to do anything outside what is in writing let them know immediately it is not what was contracted for and if it is to be done the fees will be £x per hour or part of an hour. They want to be businesslike you do the same. No favours as they will not do you any.

please try and look to the positives... I know it feels like an up hill battle but you will survive, advice is hard to give but seek someone or professional body who can help you through this crisis.... you will come out of this ... bright blessings

Hello Songstress
I can highly recommend StepChange debt charity, they will do a budget for you and talk with agencies to come to a fair amount to pay back monthly. Financial stress is hard but with them you feel like you have someone to talk to who understands. They do not charge or ask anything in return.

I can't help with any more suggestions than have been made, but I offer you my heartfelt sympathy.

So very sorry to hear about your situation. Have you thought about writing to you MP. It's the kind of thing politicians like to get involved with. I have read of their intervention working before. I hope 2021 brings better times.

I would speak to the Citizens Advice Bureau (they are a charitable enterprise and give free advice) ..or speak to an Independant Financial Advisor (they do not charge for advice...only earn from money you may invest)

Sounds like your bank was wrong not reimburse fraudulent activity and HMRC might be wrong?

In any case pointless being envious of others..
We’re all in the same storm (thought not the same boat ?)
Nobody is going on holiday or the shops for the foreseeable..
Just be thankful you have your health and your home
Take care honey ?

Please talk to your GP....it’s rather a sweeping generalisation to assume that as she’s well off she has no empathy for those who aren’t as fortunate as her....she might be able to refer you to people who can help. Don’t be too proud to accept help no one will look down on anyone who is down on their luck through no fault of their own. Take care and remember that it will pass.

When I was receiving child tax credit I was told I had been overpaid, and was asked to pay back thousands. I knew it wasn't my error so refused. This went on and on with them sending me letters threatening to sue. I told them to go ahead because I had nothing to give them. They gave up, but it was very stressful at the time. You should not have to pay it back if it wasn't your error. Seek advice.

Please contact Citizens Advice as soon as possible. They will help you sort out all of these issues. The bank has an obligation to repay you as you were scammed.
Don’t give up the fight . It is hard but you will win

I do understand your anger. I too am retiring with no private pension as I was divorced long before the Pension Act and I could not afford to pay into a private pension bringing up 3 children on my own with no maintenance. I would contact the banking ombudsman about the failure of the bank to pay back the money stolen from your account and ask them to investigate the refusal. I would also do a benefit check online on turn2us or the CAB website. U need to check the benefit position definately asap. Do you own a property? Could you sell and downsize? If you rent you could get housing benefit. The benefit check will tell u whether u can get this. I do understand yr anger. My ex has house free of mortgage a pension and a holiday home all from avoiding his responsibilities to me and his children. But, I had to learn to deal with the anger and bitterness as it was destroying me mentally and physically. You do have my sympathies, but you have to move forward and the suggestions above could be a good start. I would also suggest some counselling which can be arranged via your GP. Good luck.

Money Box on Radio 4 deals with this sort of problem. If the Bank is refusing to reimburse you and HMRC are taking payments from your pension when the mistake is theirs, email MONEY BOX.
I have also in the past contacted the financial guru in a Daily newspaper who solves problems such as this, all newspapers have this facility in the financial section once a week. I wrote to them when a utility company made an error in my bill and demanded over a £1,000. The newspaper contacted the company who in turn called me and apologised. They realised their mistake rather than take on the newspaper and the case was dropped.

I'm sorry that you have suffered a run of had luck financially. Yes, life can seem unfair at times. From my experience of Ill health (for two years) and resulting homelessness (ended up in a homeless hostel because I was too ill to work) and obviously financial problems because of this, I found that Yoga ( free online classes ) , walking in nature and eventually after I recovered working with horses again helped me psychologically. My situation has now improved but I will have to wait until I'm about 68 to retire. Being grateful for what you do have helps and comparing your life to others with more wealth is a road to unhappiness. I definitely feel that being out in nature or being around horses is very healing and makes you feel better. Just thought I'd add that money and wealth does not protect you from all of life's woes!

Please don’t write your GP off just because she drives a big car. When I was struggling I saw my GP and he was amazing! Not only was he willing to listen but he was able to point me in the direction of people who could help. Make an appointment with Citizens Advice, they can help you too. But don’t let it come between you and your friends, it’s not their fault and it would be a shame if you end up distancing yourself from them. Hope you can find the right support for you

I really do feel for you, Songstress. Lots of advice on here about financial help which is well worth pursuing. But meanwhile if you can possibly work to try and let go of the bitterness you feel about the unfairness of it all, I know it will help you to feel better about life, which is worth much more than material things. It's not easy and I don't want to sound sanctimonious, but I do speak from experience and know that letting go of the past is a step towards a more fulfilling and contented life. I will be thinking of you.

Songstress60 lots of good advice on here. One extra, I know it isn’t easy but try to let go of your frustration and your rage or you could become ill as a consequence of the stress. Dh sold his business and 6 years later HMRC demanded £1000000 which we did not have, and threatened him with jail if he did not pay immediately. They were absolute barstewards. We had to employ a specialist to deal with them and sort it out at a fraction of their unjustified demands. This took 2 years of hell but we survived except dh ended up having open heart surgery which I am sure was not unrelated.

So try to take care of yourself. Nil illigitimi carborandum. Take pleasure in the simple things. They are often the best and don’t need money.

There are many people out there who understand. Contact the CAB and Age UK immediately. Telk them about the bank refusing to refund the fraud committed against you also. They may suggest contacting the Financial Ombudsman, who review this free of charge.
Also please consider that the car someone drives does not suggest their level of compassion or understanding, they may have dealt with many cases similar to yours in the past, or had experience of hardship before. I struggled for many years financially even buying food for my children was difficult. However my circumstances have changed and I recently bought myself a new car! I may too look like someone who wouldn't understand, but I do!