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Andrew McLean - Eviction Assistance

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Social assistance glitch could lead to Toronto man's eviction
When Andrew McLean's landlord didn't receive his disability cheques, the province's SAMS system prevented new ones from being issued quickly.
Vince Talotta / Toronto Star
Andrew McLean, and his cat Priny surrounded by boxes of his belongings. He may be evicted from his apartment due to a computer error.
Published on Mar 05 2015
Marco Chown Oved
STAFF REPORTER
Some people received too much money, others not enough. But for one Toronto man, glitches in the province’s new computerized benefits payment system could get him evicted from his apartment.
Drywaller Andrew McLean, 53, had arranged for his disability cheques to go directly to his landlord to ensure his rent was paid on time. But when those cheques stopped arriving, Ontario’s Social Assistance Management System (SAMS) prevented new ones from being issued quickly.
Now his landlord has successfully argued for an eviction order for late-payment of rent, though McLean’s disability benefits caseworker admits it’s the government’s fault the cheques weren’t getting there on time.
“With the implementation of a new computer system, it has been very difficult to cancel and reissue another cheque to the landlord because of the many computer glitches we are experiencing,” McLean’s caseworker wrote in a letter submitted to the Landlord and Tenant Board. “I was not able to reissue another cheque to the landlord until three weeks after I was notified by the client that the cheque was not received.”
Ministry of Community and Social Services spokesperson Kristen Tedesco denied that SAMS was responsible for McLean’s eviction. “We want to be clear that SAMS is not the cause of tenant evictions in Ontario. If someone is eligible for ODSP, they will get their full entitlement every month. If an issue exists with the delivery of a monthly income support cheque, caseworkers can provide a replacement cheque,” she wrote in an email.
Launched last fall, the $242-million SAMS was supposed to streamline the province’s welfare and disability benefits, but has been plagued with bugs since day one. Some welfare recipients have reported receiving no money at all, while others received overpayments totalling $20 million altogether.
Andrew McLean is shown here surrounded by boxes of his belongings.
Andrew McLean is shown here surrounded by boxes of his belongings.
The botched rollout has cost the province millions in overtime and extra hires and prompted Premier Kathleen Wynne to issue a public apology and hire Pricewaterhouse Coopers to conduct an independent review.
McLean, who had a heart attack last year and is scheduled for a double bypass surgery in two weeks, says being kicked out in the cold is the last thing he needs.
“My doctor wrote me a letter saying I should avoid stress,” he said. “Now I’m sitting here with everything packed, ready for the sheriff.”
The eviction order is enforceable as of last weekend and the province is working with the city to find a solution for McLean, Tedesco said.
McLean, who moved into the one-bedroom apartment four years ago, says he’s been a productive member of society, working for decades in the construction industry and raising his son as a single father: “I worked my whole life until this happened. I’ve never been on welfare.”
After a 2012 accident caused permanent damage to his back, McLean says he has not been able to work. He has lived off workers’ compensation and disability benefits. “When I wake up in the morning, sometimes I can’t move,” he said.
Last January, McLean was late with his rent and entered into an agreement with the Landlord and Tenant Board, promising to pay his rent on time for a year. He arranged to have his rent deducted from his benefit cheque and sent directly to the landlord.
But in July, then again in September and October, even though the cheques were signed and mailed on time, the landlord says he did not receive them, according to McLean’s caseworker’s letter. By the time replacements were issued, weeks had passed.
McLean got an eviction notice in November and went to the Landlord and Tenant Board, whose verdict was that though the late cheques weren’t his fault, he would still be evicted.
“Although it is apparent that the Tenant is not directly responsible for the late rent payments from ODSP, the Tenant does bear the responsibility of meeting the conditions set out in (his agreement to pay rent on time),” wrote board member Harry Cho in an eviction order issued Dec. 23. “The absence of moral blameworthiness on the Tenant’s part is irrelevant.”
The 26-storey apartment building near Lawrence Ave. W. and Weston Rd. is owned by Realstar Management, a company that operates 170 residential buildings across Canada. Contacted by the Star, a company representative said he could not comment on an individual tenant’s situation.
“That’s what the board is there for. It’s their impartial decision,” said Scott Bigford, Realstar senior vice-president.
After being alerted to McLean’s predicament, the Ontario Coalition Against Poverty organized a rally outside the ministry responsible for the SAMS system on Wednesday.

Donations 

  • Kara Stahl
    • $20 
    • 9 yrs

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Anonymous Anonymous
Organizer
Toronto, ON

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