FLR(M) UK Spouse visa, gathering last bits of evidence... advice appreciated!

It won't make any difference, but may as well use the address they officially have.

Vulcan House, 6 Millsands, Sheffield S3 8NU

Hi there, I'm back again!

Update - we got some help from several other sources (thanks for everything you guys have chipped in with!) and have confidently submitted our application, paid and booked the biometrics appointment for my wife.
We're now in the document upload stage with Sopra Steria. Fun times.

QUESTION:
one of the document upload rules says:

4. File Name: needs to be as simple as possible e.g. bank-statement-Apr-2018.pdf Do not upload files with file names having special characters, #,ë, or bank.statement.apr.2018.pdf

However, it allowed us to upload PDF documents which have the following special characters in them: - & _ ( ) +

I did this absent-mindedly without reading the rule against special characters, as I have never had any trouble with those characters in file names ever before. Especially not with PDF, which is the format every single one of our uploads is in.

As one example of file names we've uploaded: E&M_CouncilTaxBills_aug2019-dec2019.pdf

How problematic is this regarding the special characters rule?
Is it worth it to remove all the files from the upload platform, rename them and re-upload?


Thanks.

How problematic is this regarding the special characters rule?
Is it worth it to remove all the files from the upload platform, rename them and re-upload?

I did my Biometrics yesterday.  The lady was super helpful and knowledgeable.  I did, however, watch her system as she checked the files I had uploaded.  It was quite clunky with some oddities .   The Sopra Steria system then presumably has to marry up to the HMRC system.  I bet that's an API made in hell and as robust as the Bridge over the River Kwai after Alec Guinness got shot.

I recommend you re-name the files within the guidelines then re-upload (it won't take long); Sopra Steria seems overall quite organised and I think there's probably a reason behind those guidelines - also they've only been going a year so their protocols will be current.   
It might be ok but is that a risk you want to take?      scrambling for docs at the appointment or worse getting turned down because your case officer can't open a file...   

You raise a good point! Any ideas what characters I can get away with? The way the 'rule' reads, it sounds like only dashes (-) are acceptable.

I would really stick with that. Automated systems can go quite haywire if they don't get the input they're expecting. One might hope the systems your application documents are passing through is quite robust, but it wouldn't be worth chancing it!

I would turn your:

E&M_CouncilTaxBills_aug2019-dec2019.pdf

into:

e-and-m-council-tax-bills-aug-2019-dec-2019.pdf

Unambiguous and is just undecorated letters and numbers

You raise a good point! Any ideas what characters I can get away with? The way the 'rule' reads, it sounds like only dashes (-) are acceptable.

I agree with biscuits, just give them what they ask for. In the time you spend wondering whether you can get away with it or not, you could just make the change and be done with it.