Spotlight on: National
Services handling
telephony enquiries
Introduction
This spotlight has been designed to support National Services case managers in
handling telephone enquiries. National Services were previously called National Hubs.
National Services consists of:
National telephony enquiries
National inbox
Child Benefit Online (CBOL)
For further information on the job role see National Services case managers job role.
Case managers in every contact with a claimant should:
adhere to a ‘Once and Done’ approach to clearing any to-do’s relating to the query
but
not fully case cleanse
include notes in the journal and claimant history of any actions taken, this provides a
history of contact with the claimant
encourage claimants to self-serve
handoff if necessary, if the query is complex and cannot be answered within
reasonable timescales
always check Universal Learning or seek support if you do not have the skills to
answer the query
National Services case manager actions
Case managers should identify if the claimant is calling from a different number to that
registered on their Universal Credit account, if they are see Claimant calls from a
different contact number to that registered on their account.
Case managers should establish if the claimant’s query can be answered by self-
service, or do they need help. If the claimant can self-serve, the case manager should
advise where to find the information to help the claimant answer their query. If the
claimant needs help the case manager must:
make sure the claimant fully understands the answer
clear any journal entries relating to the query
update notes
If the case manager needs to handover the query, before the handover takes place,
they must ensure the claimant fully understands what is happening and what will
happen next.
The case manager must:
select the appropriate handover category within the handover tool and timescales for
handover
update all notes with the actions taken and the reason for the handover
include any contact details for the claimant if the number is different from their
registered number or for example it’s a third party, corporate appointee or landlord
If the claimant is not assigned a case manager, then create a handover using the
“Unassigned Case Manager” option on the drop down within the handover tool.
If the query relates to an outstanding Tier 1 decision and escalation is appropriate
complete template and email to DWP UCFS Decision Makers (link sends e-mail) for
decision maker escalation and send to a team leader. For outstanding Tier 2
decisions, escalation is via the drop down on the handover tool.
Query examples
Payments
There could be a wide variety of enquiries around payments, including:
there is no payment?
the amount of the payment
Basic payment queries
Some basic payment queries could be answered by the claimant accessing the
information on their online account. If the claimant is able to self-serve, then advise
the claimant on where to find this information.
Payment not issued
A claimant may contact Universal Credit to ask where their payment is? Initially you
will need to identify what date the payment is due to be paid.
Enquiry before date of payment
If the enquiry is before the date of payment, where appropriate clear any to -do’s that
may block payment whilst on the phone with the claimant, and advise when the
payment is due.
Enquiry after end of assessment period
If the enquiry is after the date of payment, within the ‘Overdue to-dos to calculate
payment’ to-do, identify any outstanding action required for payment to be calculated
and complete any to-dos you are able to, inform the claimant of any actions they need
to take and handover to the appropriate agent for them to complete.
Also check for any ‘Check automated calculation’ to-dos and then handover to the
owning case manager to consider making a payment.
Also check the sanctions tab and take any appropriate actions.
Querying the amount of the payment
A claimant may query the amount of their payment. To help explain how the payment
has been calculated, you should work through the claimant’s statement with them.
Consider if any of the following have affected the amount paid:
sanctions – check the Sanctions tab and if the claimant does not agree with the
sanction then create a Mandatory Reconsideration to-do
deductions – explain what deductions have been taken see Spotlight on: Signposting
claimants with debt and deductions
earnings – explain how earnings affect Universal Credit payments see Spotlight on:
Disputed earnings
Re-issuing payments
If a claimant advises that they have not received their payment, and you establish via
Central Payment System (CPS) that the payment has been returned, then you can re-
issue the payment. This is issued by creating and completing the ‘Make a Payment’ to -
do.
Recoverable Hardship Payments
When a claimant asks for a Recoverable Hardship Payment (RHP) open the ‘Apply for
Recoverable Hardship Payment’ to-do. You must confirm whether the claimant meets
the eligibility criteria, for more information see Recoverable Hardship Payments.
Complete the ‘Apply for a recoverable hardship payment’ ALP, and upload the
appropriate letter to the journal advising if the payment has been approved or rejected.
If the payment is approved launch the ‘Extra frequency payment’ to-do and complete
CPS with the payment details.
Deferral of Advance recovery
During the recovery of the Advance, exceptional circumstances may occur that were
not foreseen when the Advance was taken out (for example, a child going into hospital
which results in unexpected and regular bus/taxi fares for the parents to vis it).
If there is a risk that these circumstances will push the claimant into genuine hardship
and cause difficulty repaying the Advance over the agreed recovery time, a deferral of
the recovery can be considered.
Deferral means a claimant has up to 3 months where no advance recovery action is
taken. However, if the claimant has other deductions on their account that may not
currently being deducted as they are lower down the priority order, these may be
deducted. See Deductions Priority Order.
A request for a deferral can be handled by a National Services case manager.
For more information on the recovery and deferral of the different types of Advances
see Financial Hardship.
Self-reported earnings
If the ‘Self-reported earnings’ to-do is outstanding, then complete it and take action as
per the to-do if the claim is suspended for this reason, and lift the suspension if there
is one.
If a claim has been suspended as the claimant has not self-reported their earnings,
then take the earnings details over the phone and lift the suspension.
Habitual Residency Test
Where a claimant enquires about their Habitual Residency Test (HRT) decision they
may want:
an explanation of the decision
to know how the decision was made?
to know what evidence was used to make the decision?
The case manager should not try to explain the HRT decision to the claimant. If the
claimant wants more information about the decision, then create and complete a
‘Refer to Decision Maker: written explanation’ to-do for a decision maker.
If the claimant asks for a reconsideration or to appeal against the decision, then create
and complete a ‘Refer to Decision Maker (mandatory reconsideration)’ to-do for a
decision maker.
Childcare
A claimant may enquire why they have not been paid their childcare costs. This could
be where a claimant:
has not provided the necessary evidence, or
has provided evidence but this has not been accepted
Check if the ‘Verify childcare costs’ to-do is outstanding in the claim Overview. This
indicates that the evidence has not been provided.
If the ‘Verify childcare costs’ to-do is not outstanding, then check the claimant history
to check for the type of evidence provided or whether the evidence provided was
received on time.
If there are no notes on the journal or claimant history to explain why childcare costs
have not been paid, then hand-off to the owning case manager.
For more information on the types of acceptable childcare evidence and timescales to
report the costs see and Spotlight on: Childcare Declaration and evidence and
Childcare costs.
Claim closures
Claims can be closed for a number of reasons, and occasionally can be closed in
error.
Claim closed in error - if the ‘Additional actions (close claim)’ to–do is still
outstanding then hand-off to the owning case manager to consider re-opening.
If the ‘Additional actions (close claim)’ to-do is not outstanding, then raise a CIL with
your Service Innovation Lead (SIL).
Claim closed by claimant – where a claimant has closed their previous claim and
they want to re-claim, advise them of the process to do this. For more information see
Re-claims.
Claim made by phone - Where a claimant has made their claim by phone, they are
not able to accept their claimant commitment in the Service. For more information see
Spotlight on: Claims by phone. If their claim is closed, as they have not accepted their
claimant commitment, then you should apologise to the claimant and handover to the
owning case manager to raise a CIL.
Landlords
You may receive enquiries from landlords asking for details about their tenant’s claim
to Universal Credit. For more information see Consent and disclosure.
If an Alternative Payment Arrangement, which is a Managed Payment to a Landlord is
in place, the following information can be disclosed to the landlord if requested without
explicit consent:
the start date of the Managed Payment and/or a third party deduction
when they can expect to receive the first Managed Payment and/or the third party
deduction from DWP
the amount of the next Managed Payment to Landlord
the maximum additional amount of housing costs payable in the next payment of
Universal Credit (the circumstances that led to the change will not be discussed)
If an APA has been stopped then you must not provide the landlord with any details
about the claimant’s Universal Credit, apart from confirming that the APA has stopped.
You can signpost the landlord to GOV.UK (link is external) for more information.
Reporting a change of circumstance
Where a Managed Payment to Landlord is in place, a landlord may contact Universal
Credit to report a change in circumstance. The change must be accepted and actioned
accordingly.
Claimant requires a home visit
Some claimants may not be able to attend their appointment for example due to health
conditions, caring responsibilities or accessibility needs. For further information see
Home Visits.
Claimant calls from a different contact number to that registered on their
account
If you identify that a claimant is calling from a contact number which is different to that
registered on their Universal account, confirm if they have changed their contact
number. If they have, ask the claimant if they are able to update their Un iversal Credit
account. Explain to the claimant the benefits of keeping their contact number up to
date, that is:
if they contact again it will try and match their number and put them through to their
own case manager.
they will also miss out on important updates that are sent by SMS text.
If the claimant is locked out of their account advise them to attempt to use the
‘Problems signing in’ link on the ‘Sign in to your Universal Credit account’. The
claimant should then raise a change of circumstances and update the registered
contact number.
If the claimant is unable to access their account after following this process, then try to
help the claimant by re-issuing the PSN or raising a JIRA ticket if there appears to be
a technical problem.