A SOLVA mum and her daughter are finally sleeping soundly in their beds after the Western Telegraph saved them from eviction.

Claire Reynolds of Maes y Mor, and eight-year-old Sabrina, expected to be thrown out of their home on Friday after an Inland Revenue blunder meant their rent went unpaid for almost three months.

Claire, aged 29, could not even afford the petrol to get to work after her Family Tax Credit first jumped from the correct amount of £94 each week to £180, before being slashed to just £3.42.

Despite office worker Claire repeatedly querying the £180 payment, she was told it was correct. However, the Inland Revenue then admitted a clerical error led to an over-payment and Claire was sent a bill for £5,500. Her weekly credit was then cut by a staggering 95%.

"I am just so relieved," said Claire. "Sabrina could tell something was wrong and I was sure we were going to be thrown out.

"They told me that even though it was not my fault, it would take three months to fix and nothing could be done to save our home. It was only after the Western Telegraph stepped in that things started to happen."

The Western Telegraph went straight to the Inland Revenue's head office and demanded that Claire's case be reviewed immediately. She finally received a call on Thursday evening telling her the situation was being examined.

By Friday, just minutes before Claire was to face eviction proceedings at the County Court, she was told her landlords had agreed to defer the hearing, the £5,500 debt had been scrapped as an act of goodwill and a cheque for almost £1,000 to cover back payments was waiting for her in the Haverfordwest office at Cherry Grove.

"Obviously I'm absolutely delighted," said Claire at the weekend.

"I had nowhere else to turn and was sure we were going to be evicted. The Western Telegraph has saved our home."

Although Claire's debt has now been scrapped and a payment made to cover the underpayment of the last three months, she will not receive the correct weekly payment for at least another two weeks.

Much of the confusion over Claire's tax credit arose because of last year's change from Working Families' Tax Credit to Working Tax Credit. These, in turn, replaced the old tax allowances system.

However, unlike the old system where tax codes were altered to take into account personal details, now tax codes remain the same and a weekly payment is made to cover the difference.

Inland Revenue officers refuse to comment on specific cases.