Recently, we’ve provided you with plenty of blog posts regarding the current developments within the benefits system. We’ve looked at the ever-growing debates surrounding Universal Credits, the nightmares that many members of the public are having due to Concentrix, and a few case studies that highlight how easy it is to get caught up in a benefit fraud scandal. At Hylton-Potts, we believe that giving people as much information as possible is the best way to help them avoid being investigated for benefit fraud. Whether you’ve made a simple error or just didn’t know what you were doing was against…
You might think it goes without saying that, once you separate from your wife or husband, their debts go the same way, and you’re no longer answerable to the collectors attached to them… but you would be wrong. In our long career in the legal profession, we have come across far too many individuals who didn’t protect themselves financially when they decided to separate from their partner. This is demonstrated most recently with Trinny Woodall (of the famous Trinny and Suzanna fashion duo), who found herself centre-stage of a tough legal battle. According to reports, Ms Woodall is being pursued…
A few weeks ago, we brought you the news that the government contract with Concentrix was bring scrapped. To refresh your memory, Concentrix are the multi-billion-pound American business, currently contracted by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), to investigate alleged benefit fraud. Having received hundreds of complaints about the company from members of the public, regarding everything from their brutal investigation tactics to their questionable methods of “discovering” fraud, the HMRC decided not to renew their contract. However, thanks to a new report released by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), the HMRC and Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) have once…
Work and Pensions Secretary, Damian Green, held a welfare review earlier this month, to look more closely at how people qualify for sick pay, the use of doctors’ notes, and the controversial ‘work capability assessments’. These assessments aim to determine whether disabled people are eligible for welfare, but Green has claimed that working is better for people’s health than “sitting at home living on benefits”. It is the secretary’s aim to encourage people back into the world of employment, as he claims this will improve their health, as well as reduce the annual figure the government spends on benefits. While…
At Hylton Potts, we know how much our clients and the general public rely on us to bring them the latest news when it comes to our specialist legal fields. Recently, Jeremy Hunt has commented on how the NHS is too reliant on the high number of EU doctors and other medical professionals currently in the employ of the British healthcare system, and we feel it is our duty to tell you the facts on this story. Hunt has suggested, in a statement to the media, how the post-Brexit NHS should aim to slash the number of foreign doctors currently…
In recent years, the number of people trying to make some quick cash by subletting their property has increased. Direct Line for Business’s recent research showed that one in six tenants have rented out part or all of their property to someone who isn’t on the lease. Shockingly, out of those who did sub-let their property, 25% failed to first check the terms of their lease beforehand, while more than a third didn’t tell their landlords. On one hand, subletting your property can be a brilliant way of easing your financial burdens, helping you to continue living in a property…
There are many people out there who wish to sublet their council or privately rented property. While in a lot of these cases it can be perfectly legal and above board, we hear all too often from our clients about those who went about it in entirely the wrong way. According to a study conducted by Direct Line, they estimated that in 2014, 3.3 million people lived as unofficial tenants, which is as many as 1 in every 10 rental homes. This kind of illegal activity is growing in force every day, but what’s surprising is how many are unknowingly…
Entering into informal property transactions without the benefit of legal advice is a recipe for disaster, as a young man found out when his relationship with his girlfriend ended acrimoniously and she insisted that he had no interest in the house that they had shared. The man had agreed to the property being held in his girlfriend’s sole name because he had a poor credit history and was concerned that he would be rejected by the mortgage provider. After they split up, he applied to the Land Registry to register his beneficial interest in the property, but that was resisted…
With new guidance having been issued regarding the interpretation of ‘need’ for the purpose of financial settlements on divorce, a recent case shows how the courts have been moving away from a rigid adherence to the principle of ‘equality’ in the division of assets. It involved a wealthy couple who had in excess of £10 million in assets when they commenced divorce proceedings 14 years after they married. The ex-husband argued that his former wife’s claim for a half share of the assets was not appropriate because he already owned their main asset – a care home business – when…
A recent decision of the High Court will come as a comfort to those whose ex-spouses have fallen into arrears with their child maintenance payments. It involved a man who was behind with child maintenance payments payable to the Child Support Agency when he died. He had also agreed to maintain a life assurance policy which would provide for his ex-wife and child in the event of his death. Without telling his ex-wife, he stopped making payments so it lapsed. Had she known, she could have paid the premiums herself. His estate was insolvent if the maintenance liabilities were recognised…
