Tax rebates through CWU

[MentalVortex]

So, in that mailout we all got yesterday there was another of those 'your union will make sure you get any tax back that you are entitled to' and for this wonderful service they'll let you keep 61p in every pound you get back. Shouldn't a union fully committed to its members just truthfully state that you can check your tax code yourself as easily as it was to fill out the registration for this forum? And for that you get to keep 100p of every pound you get back. Complete money-making ripoff on behalf of the CWU. I should have kept that sheet but it went in the bin with the rest of the CWU junk that came with it, but if memory serves they claim that they've helped get members something like £500,000 or so back in overpaid tax. That would mean that they themselves have taken almost £200,000 of members' reclaimed taxes.

Check your tax yourselves, people. It's dead simple. If CWU had any integrity to speak of they'd give you the information below instead.

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/incometax/check-right-tax.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

mv

[cloherty1976]

I totally agree as I did my tax this year and have got £500 back just for claiming for meal allowance which I was entitled too. Cwu not interested as a lot of the drivers don't get this. It did take a years battle but got there in the end and when you ad it to the new tax allowance I got this year it's £750 in my wife's pocket!! That's my pay rise for the year

[chickenwittle]

talking about jollies looking at billy and dave ward in the voice they are getting fatter everytime i see them,good to know our subs are going to a good cause.

[cloherty1976]

It's just the same as these ppi firms ringing you so they can charge you a fee when all you have to do is ring the banks

[arnold cheshire]

it wasnt through the cwu it was an advert leaflet

[MentalVortex]

Yeah, I saw that surewecan mentioned it was through some crowd called PTS. Regardless, the CWU are supposed to be there for the benefit of their members and, as such, including a leaflet like that in their mail outs shows a complete disregard for its membership. Those leaflets weren't just thrown in there at the drop of a hat; presumably someone at CWU vetted what literature went into the package and allowed it to go through. If you're working at that level in a union you should be well-versed and savvy enough to know that 'services' like this are a rip-off and point members towards the ways in which they can do this sort of thing themselves (cost-free). Of course, the high probability that the CWU take a fee for allowing outside companies to be included in their member mail outs is enough to make it plausible for them to take the money, endorse the service and run.

[arnold cheshire]

Yeah, I saw that surewecan mentioned it was through some crowd called PTS. Regardless, the CWU are supposed to be there for the benefit of their members and, as such, including a leaflet like that in their mail outs shows a complete disregard for its membership. Those leaflets weren't just thrown in there at the drop of a hat; presumably someone at CWU vetted what literature went into the package and allowed it to go through. If you're working at that level in a union you should be well-versed and savvy enough to know that 'services' like this are a rip-off and point members towards the ways in which they can do this sort of thing themselves (cost-free). Of course, the high probability that the CWU take a fee for allowing outside companies to be included in their member mail outs is enough to make it plausible for them to take the money, endorse the service and run.

yes it was insulting really

[Kidders]

Yeah, I saw that surewecan mentioned it was through some crowd called PTS. Regardless, the CWU are supposed to be there for the benefit of their members and, as such, including a leaflet like that in their mail outs shows a complete disregard for its membership. Those leaflets weren't just thrown in there at the drop of a hat; presumably someone at CWU vetted what literature went into the package and allowed it to go through. If you're working at that level in a union you should be well-versed and savvy enough to know that 'services' like this are a rip-off and point members towards the ways in which they can do this sort of thing themselves (cost-free). Of course, the high probability that the CWU take a fee for allowing outside companies to be included in their member mail outs is enough to make it plausible for them to take the money, endorse the service and run.

yes it was insulting really

Theres a lot of assumptions being made, do you guys ever actually talk to your Branch about this sort of stuff ?

[BernardBresslaw]

So, in that mailout we all got yesterday there was another of those 'your union will make sure you get any tax back that you are entitled to' and for this wonderful service they'll let you keep 61p in every pound you get back. Shouldn't a union fully committed to its members just truthfully state that you can check your tax code yourself as easily as it was to fill out the registration for this forum? And for that you get to keep 100p of every pound you get back. Complete money-making ripoff on behalf of the CWU. I should have kept that sheet but it went in the bin with the rest of the CWU junk that came with it, but if memory serves they claim that they've helped get members something like £500,000 or so back in overpaid tax. That would mean that they themselves have taken almost £200,000 of members' reclaimed taxes.

Check your tax yourselves, people. It's dead simple. If CWU had any integrity to speak of they'd give you the information below instead.

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/incometax/check-right-tax.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

mv

Aren't you paying a percentage for the ease of filling in a 2 minute form for this company to do the chasing up on your behalf though? I've already spent longer than that looking at the link you posted, and can't see how what it contains is in any way comparable. Not defending them, but I can see why people use them.

[clashcityrocker]

The same logic applies to pretty much any service offered.
Why do launderettes offer service washes when people can just sit there and watch their clothes go round themselves?

Convenience. And having looked at the HMRC website, I can understand why people would rather let someone with more experience sort it out for them.
Especially if their case isn't straightforward.
Dealing with HMRC is like a Kafkaesque nightmare, one you might never escape from.

Of course you can do everything yourself. All you need is two small aubergines.

[Danelectro]

Of course you can do everything yourself. All you need is two small aubergines.

[General Mannerheim]

Yeah, I saw that surewecan mentioned it was through some crowd called PTS. Regardless, the CWU are supposed to be there for the benefit of their members and, as such, including a leaflet like that in their mail outs shows a complete disregard for its membership. Those leaflets weren't just thrown in there at the drop of a hat; presumably someone at CWU vetted what literature went into the package and allowed it to go through. If you're working at that level in a union you should be well-versed and savvy enough to know that 'services' like this are a rip-off and point members towards the ways in which they can do this sort of thing themselves (cost-free). Of course, the high probability that the CWU take a fee for allowing outside companies to be included in their member mail outs is enough to make it plausible for them to take the money, endorse the service and run.

Well my wife who is with Usdaw got the same set of knobjockeys offering this `service` with her latest union mag.