I am a huge fan of LaurenZSide. My daughter and I shared a room until she was twelve years old and before reading we’d often watch Minecraft videos and subsequently YouTube videos of our favourite players, LaurenZSide, LDShadowLady, SmallishBeans, Grian, Mythical Sausage, OrionSound, Shubble and many more – (Who can forget Joey Graceffa and Solidarity!) Anyhow, I digress. (Oops, sorry Scott, you too). The fact is we love her, from her loud, brash American infectious laugh to her insane curiosity to delve into trends no one else dare, such as Life of Luxury.
We gasped in real time at the bath bomb saga and celebrated when Lauren announced her first pregnancy.
This is why, when a Brit named Naomi popped up claiming Lauren had starved her, I had to do some digging, and pick apart her claims. I am also British, and although I’m a writer now, I used to work with the benefits system, and I know quite a lot that proves Naomi is lying. Not only that, but she could also go to prison for the claims she’s making. This is why.
You’re Not Allowed to Work on Disability Benefit
If you receive disability benefit in the UK it generally means you are 100% unfit for work and can’t earn money any other way. You can earn an income but by doing this you’re showing you’re capable of taking care of yourself and your every day living and your claim could be dismissed or reduced as a result. It’s also rare to get PIP (Personal Independence Payments) alone, they are usually bundled with Jobseekers allowance or Universal Credit. Standard benefits, such as Universal Credit, allow you to work but every penny you make is deducted from your claim.
For example, if Naomi was claiming Universal Credit and earned £60 per week from LaurenZSide, she would have to log that in her earnings and expenses and her universal credit would decrease as a result.
This means, if she earned more, she’d lose that amount. The more she earned, the more she loses. This is IF she is declaring it. Also, IF she’s only on Universal Credit and not on disability benefit.
Now if she’s on disability benefit and earning, she would be deemed fit for work. Her disability benefit would stop or her points would be reduced and it would be unlikely she’d be entitled to much. Period. (Sorry I’ve always wanted to say that). If she doesn’t declare it, she’s breaking the law and a benefit fraud which poses the threat of up to 20 years in prison.
So yeah, there’s that.
Disability benefit is paid on top of Universal Credit and there to help you manage your life, to pay for extra help you may need being disabled, etc. The government expect all the money they give you to cover all costs, the court will not accept that you needed to earn more to pay for groceries.
Now we’ve debunked that one, let’s move onto another.
How Much Naomi Was Paid
Now, if Naomi was operating, legally or illegally as a freelancer, she would have set her rate. This would NOT be an hourly rate, as freelancers like this (I am one) usually set their rate per project. Lauren would not have decided how much to pay her. That’s ridiculous. No client ever does that. That’s like walking into Sainsbury’s and saying, I only want to pay 50 pence for this avocado today. Nah, it’s not happening.
The fact Lauren increased this shows that Lauren thought it wasn’t enough and so topped it up. Naomi isn’t entitled to a share of Lauren’s videos.
I worked for a well-known chocolate company, saved them £750,000 in a rebrand mistake. How much did I earn? Nothing. Another I made their new product no.1 on the shelves of Waitrose, profits galore. Did I ask for more money? No. You don’t get a share of your client’s profits. Your job is your job, you set your rate and do it no matter how successful they become.
It’s also worth noting that it’s not Lauren’s fault if the videos took longer than expected due to the disability. I’m not mocking disability here, my own 24 yr old son is disabled, in receipt of PIP and I care for him. I am, however, saying that the disability is not the clients fault. Did Naomi declare this at the beginning?
Naomi was working per project, not on an hourly rate, something she seems to forget, a lot.
Naomi as a Freelancer
This point is proved as she says she worked outside of IR35 which means she wasn’t an EMPLOYEE of LaurenZSide, she wasn’t even bound by a contract. She was a freelancer providing ad hoc work.
This means she was responsible for setting the price, paying her own taxes and national insurance. She wasn’t entitled to anything like dental plans, sick days, paid holiday. That’s like getting a builder to build you an extension, they go on holiday for two weeks and ask you to continue to pay them their daily rate. Ludicrous huh?
Anyhow, as a freelancer you NEVER have just one client. That’s insane. You have multiple and you’re always pitching for more work or picking it up through word of mouth. The fact Naomi has targeted LaurenZSide shows she’s just after views and fame.
The problem is, she could end up in prison for it, and not due to anything LaurenZSide has to say.
Maybe it’s time to put this one to bed. To remember, there’s always someone out there ready to piggyback off your success or bring you down due to the green-eyed monster. Ignore the hate and concentrate on the love.
Naomi is obviously struggling right now and may see this as a way to earn a quick buck but this isn’t the way to do it. I do hope she finds real help and sees the error of her ways, trying to take down one of our most loved creators on YouTube and TikTok.
