UC Carers element

Mrevertonone

Hi guys, 
Quick question, you have all been so helpful on my other posts.
My partner gets PIP lower daily living amount, she also gets LCWRA, i work full time
i never knew about the UC carers element, is that something i can claim for? as i am the one who helps my partner with everything when at home, does it matter i work full time? if i can claim how do i go about it on our UC journal.
Thanks again 

Sean

poppy123456

There's no earnings limit when claiming carers element like there is with carers allowance. Providing you care for your partner for at least 35 hours per week then you can report a change of circumstances. Then report being their carer. Your maximum UC entitlement will then increase by £168.81/month.

Mrevertonone

Thank you again Poppy

Mrevertonone

Hi Poppy,
Within the 35 hours do they include evenings and night time as i would be with my partner more at those times, and then the 2 days i have off.

Sean

poppy123456

Anytime in the 7 days counts.

Mrevertonone

Thank you again Poppy, i just want to make sure im not claiming something im not entitled to, 
what do you count as "caring for someone" i have to make sure she takes her insulin, tablets, help with food prep, sometimes getting dressed, housework etc is that the sort of thing they mean Poppy?

As i said thank you again for all your help

Sean

poppy123456

You're welcome. Caring for someone can mean anything from just sitting with them. It doesn't mean you have to do anything physical. So anything you've mentioned above are all caring duties.

Mrevertonone

Thank you again....seem to be saying that a lot!
One last question, can i ask for the UC carers element to be back dated at all?

Sean

poppy123456

You can certainly ask them but if you didn’t report being her carer then they may not backdate it. Usually it’s paid from the assessment period in which the changes were reported. Certainly no harm in asking though. 

Mrevertonone

Thank you again Poppy, you are a star 
Did a change of circumstances last night, how long does it normally take to go through?
This forum has been a godsend, its amazing how much you can learn on here, before we claimed LCWRA and work allowence (both we had never heard off) our UC was roughly £30 a month! because of what i earn, which isnt a lot! Its crazy to think of what people arent claiming when they should be, im hoping there isnt anything else we have missed by not claiming!

As i said Poppy thank you again

Sean

poppy123456

No worries. It may take a week or two to process it. If your next statement is due soon it may not be included in that but it should be included in your next statement.

If they agree to backdate the element then it may take quite a few weeks because they will need to recalculate your past statements to work out what you should have been paid, against what you have been paid. You will then receive a letter on your journal telling you how much they owe and it will then be paid into your bank.

UC has replaced all the old legacy benefits so the only other benefit that's possible to claim would be council tax reduction. If you're working full time you may not be entitled to that but as all local Authorities have their own rules i can't advise on that.

Mrevertonone

Thank you  already had this months statement, we get paid the 16th, i will keep an eye out for anything on our journal. 

Mrevertonone

Hi Poppy, 
hope you are well, sorry got another question.
My partner just got a letter saying if we claim housing benefit we will lose that if we claim the carers  element, I didn’t think we claimed housing benefit, just looking on our UC payment thingy and it says we get £344.90 housing, is that housing benefit ? If yes then it seems silly to claim £168 and lose £344.90, sorry for all the questions

Sean

Mrevertonone

Hi Poppy,
I have tried looking online and can’t find anything, I’ve read the whole letter again and this is what it says,
Dear Joanna 
we have been notified that Sean cares for you for 35 hours or more.......if you receive a severe disability premium with any of the following benefits it will stop:
income based jobseekers allowence
income support
income related employment and support allowance
housing benefit
council tax benefit
pension credit.....
whats classed as a severe disability premium ?
we get UC, LCWRA, the working allowance, and the lower rate of daily living on PIP
Are any of these classed as severe disability premium ? I’m slightly worried now
thank you for all your help Poppy

Sean 

poppy123456

Severe disability premium is paid in with certain legacy benefits such as Income Related ESA, JSA and Income Support.

As your partner is claiming UC with you then they can't be claiming the SDP because it doesn't exist with UC. Therefore claiming carers element will have no affect on any of your current benefits.

Mrevertonone said:

Hi Poppy, 
hope you are well, sorry got another question.
My partner just got a letter saying if we claim housing benefit we will lose that if we claim the carers  element, I didn’t think we claimed housing benefit, just looking on our UC payment thingy and it says we get £344.90 housing, is that housing benefit ? If yes then it seems silly to claim £168 and lose £344.90, sorry for all the questions

Sean

Did you receive this letter as well as the other one? As you're claiming UC unless you're either living in supported or temporary housing then your rent will be paid in with your UC known as housing element, not housing benefit.

Claiming carers element has no affect on your housing element. So i'm confused why you received the letter. Was it on your journal?

Mrevertonone

Hi Poppy,
Thank you for your reply, we got one letter in the post, nothing on our journal, the second post I put, I roughly copied the exact wording of the letter, I’ve made this more complicated than it should have been, sorry

Sean

poppy123456

Was a claim for carers allowance made or just carers element? It makes no difference anyway because your over benefit entitlement will remain the same because carers allowance is deducted in full from any UC entitlement.

Mrevertonone

Hi Poppy,
i cant claim carers allowance as I earn too much! So just carers element, which I didn’t know about until I saw a post on here

Sean