Dear Claudienne,

I am a retiree on a government pension. I have been contributing to the Widows and Orphans fund from June 1979, when I received my permanent appointment in the Ministry of Agriculture. I was informed that after 35 years of regular monthly payments, one is no longer required to contribute to the said fund.

I wrote to the Ministry of Finance (Pensions Branch) and received a reply stating that my records indicate that I am qualified for the exemption. The Pensions Branch said that for the exemption to be applied I would need to get from the Ministry of Agriculture supporting documents indicating my contributions during my years of employment at the ministry.

My problem is that I have been trying to get this information from the Ministry of Agriculture for more than two years, but have not been successful.

Two employees at the ministry told me that the office registry is in a deplorable state and that it is very difficult to retrieve information from that source.

This explanation is unsatisfactory. After working hard for so many years, it is frustrating to hear that your file is not readily available.

To make matters worse, I will have to continue making payments to the Widows and Orphans fund from my pension up to the year 2020 when I will reach the age of 65.

I would appreciate your help.

EB

Dear EB,

Tell Claudienne has been in communication with the Pensions Branch of the Finance Ministry. According to the Pensions Branch, based on the date when you received your first appointment letter from the Offices of the Services Commission, you should have stopped contributing to the Widows and Orphans fund from June 1, 2015.

The Pensions Branch has stated the following: “EB is in fact correct. He was appointed in 1979 and should have served a one-year probationary period, which will make him cease contribution to this Scheme with effect from June 1, 2015.”

The Pensions Branch is in the process of retrieving your file. They said that as soon as the computation has been completed, the Accountant General’s Department will be told to stop making deductions to the Scheme from your pension with immediate effect.

We will follow up this matter. Please let us know when the Accountant General stops the deductions from your pension.

Good luck.

Dear Claudienne,

On my April 2016 bill from Flow, a charge of $400+GCT has been included for an on-demand movie from May 9, 2015. This charge was already charged to me on my June 2015 bill which was paid long ago. I have written to Flow about this but have received no response. I think it is unfair that I have to be spending my time, paper and ink (at additional cost to me) writing to Flow about this error which is no fault of mine.

Please see below a list of charges that Flow has charged on my bill for calls to Flow’s toll free number.

To add insult to injury, when you call Flow’s toll free number, you are forced to remain on hold for an extended period of time, most times getting no help from them after the long wait.

I just cannot understand what is the purpose of the Office of Utilities Regulation when these things are allowed to continue.

1. 06 Apr 16 06:06P Toll Free 8008042994 00:02:06 $10.50

2. 06 Apr 16 06:09P Toll Free 8008042994 00:15:37 $78.50

3. 07 Apr 16 04:16P Toll Free 8008042994 00:09:56 $50.00

4. 07 Apr 16 04:27P Toll Free 8008042994 00:01:05 $5.50

5. 07 Apr 16 04:28P Toll Free 8008042994 00:24:05 $120.50

6. 07 Apr 16 04:56P Toll Free 8008042994 00:03:23 $17.00

7. 07 Apr 16 05:00P Toll Free 8008042994 00:36:48 $184.00

8. 07 Apr 16 05:42P Toll Free 8008042994 00:40:41 $203.50

9. 09 Apr 16 10:11P Toll Free 8008042994 00:24:39 $123.50

I would be grateful for your assistance.

AB

Dear AB

We asked Flow to investigate your complaint and they have assured us that your concerns have now been addressed.

An e-mail Flow sent to

Tell Claudienne stated:

“

Thank you for bringing the attached letter to our attention. AB raised two concerns in his correspondence. The first was about being billed again for a previously purchased VOD movie and the second concerned being billed for calls made to our toll free number.

Our investigation of the concerns indicated that AB was inadvertently billed in both instances. We regret this error and wish to advise that a rebate was applied to his account for the VOD purchase and the call charges. AB was advised of this resolution on May 16 and also of his current balance following the rebate.

Thank you again for giving us an opportunity to resolve this issue, and be assured that we are taking the necessary steps to prevent a recurrence.”

Please let us know if you need further clarification.

Good luck.

Have a problem with a store, utility, a company? Telephone 936-9436 or write to Tell Claudienne c/o Sunday Finance, Jamaica Observer, 40-42 1/2 Beechwood Avenue, Kingston 5; or e-mail: edwardsc@jamaicaobserver.com. Please include a contact phone number.