I have put in a date for the first letter but as it has been proven I did not own a cent to Centrelink I threw the letters out so I can only guess the date of the first impertinent letter.
I was shocked to receive such a letter as I know I always pay my tax and would not be so stupid to cheat especially a large amount.
I was trying to move from Brisbane to Melbourne and the last thing I needed was to waste time with two sets of data bases owned by the government that did not align.
Furthermore, I did not appreciate the threatening tone of the the letter which was reminiscent of some American movie where the innocent person is threaten with the arrival of the IRS and a jail sentence.
On receipt of the letter I immediately rang to find out how their records could be so wrong.
It caused me undue stress feeling that some bureaucratic bungle had occurred and I would spend hours fixing it up.
Once again like something out of Yes Minister or Hitchhikkers Guide to the Galaxy.
In the end I had to demand to speak with the Manager and still their was a recalcitrant bureaucrat who did not want to delete my debt, because I was not next in line.
In other words even thought I was perfectly innocent I had to wait until they had time to satisfy themselves.
The cheek of them as thought they didn't have to question their own records but I had to prove my innocent.
The waste of my time waiting around for letters from their office and repeat letters even after the matter was settled.
This all amounts to to hours wasted that should be reimbursed and further compensation for the stress.
I felt that the Government has forgotten they are there as Public Servants not overlords.
They are suppose to be using our taxes to run the country efficiently, not to harass the citizens.
It is their responsibility to align their data bases with that of Centrelink and the Tax Office. And it is their responsibility to check their records rather than just assume as I had earned money that year that I had done it illegally.
Instead as an academic I worked a short period on contract and did not claim Centrelink. All of which was proved correct.
It is their responsibility to make sure their records correct.
To use a rogue bot as the excuse only means that in the future they will all be replaced by algorithms and it will be their fault.
I feel a class action should be made and compensation for my time sitting on telephone waiting for them to muck around trying to understand their data bases let alone the constant return calls I had to make.
My time is money and I want my money back with interest.
Also we should be compensated for the stress and delays it caused to my shift interstate due the despicable threat of the 'pimping' to the Tax Office. So childish!!!!