Hi, my name is Tiggywigs! Back pay query

Tiggywigs
Tiggywigs Community member Posts: 10 Listener
edited May 2023 in Universal Credit (UC)
My claim for UC began 15 July 2019 prior to making a claim I was off work and a fit note was in place. I was receiving statutory sick pay. My employment ended on 14 August 2019. 
I received a Capability Assessment form is September and went for medical in November 2019. The Decision did not go in my favour and eventually had to go to tribunal.
Covid caused massive delays getting to a hearing.
Move forward to November 2022 my appeal was finally heard. The Decision Makers decision was set aside and LCWRA was tribunal decision.
On 6 May 2020 I reached pension age.
I am of the opinion I am entitled to back pay but DWP state I am not and mention 3 month wait. I am of the opinion my 3 month started from 15 July 2019 to 14 October 2019, can someone confirm. If I am right please?
TIA


Comments

  • Alex_Alumni
    Alex_Alumni Scope alumni Posts: 7,538 Championing
    Hi there @Tiggywigs I'm sorry no one's been able to answer your post yet, please accept our apologies.

     I'm glad to hear the tribunal helped to appeal your LCWRA decision. Have you contacted the DWP about this at all?
  • Tiggywigs
    Tiggywigs Community member Posts: 10 Listener
    Thank for responding Alex. I have contacted the DWP 3 times now. They left a message on my UC journal but I'm unable to reply because I've retired now.
    I have contacted my MP to try get the to rectify the problem.
  • Tiggywigs
    Tiggywigs Community member Posts: 10 Listener
    Hi Alex by my reckoning I'm owed 6 monthly payments @ £336.20 and 1 payment of £341.92. I've wrote to DWP emailed twice telephoned 3 times. I have since contacted my MP.
  • Adrian_Scope
    Adrian_Scope Posts: 11,543 Online Community Programme Lead
    I hope your MP is able to help @Tiggywigs. Can I ask, were you still receiving sick pay during 15 July and 14 August when your employment ended? I'm wondering if your earnings were above the relevant threshold. 
  • calcotti
    calcotti Community member Posts: 10,005 Championing
    edited May 2023
    Tiggywigs said:
    My claim for UC began 15 July 2019 prior to making a claim I was off work and a fit note was in place. I was receiving statutory sick pay. My employment ended on 14 August 2019. 
    I received a Capability Assessment form is September and went for medical in November 2019. The Decision did not go in my favour and eventually had to go to tribunal.
    Covid caused massive delays getting to a hearing.
    Move forward to November 2022 my appeal was finally heard. The Decision Makers decision was set aside and LCWRA was tribunal decision.
    On 6 May 2020 I reached pension age.
    I am of the opinion I am entitled to back pay but DWP state I am not and mention 3 month wait. I am of the opinion my 3 month started from 15 July 2019 to 14 October 2019, can someone confirm. If I am right please?
    I agree. The LCWRA element should have been included for the 15th October to 14th November 2019 period and thereafter. It should therefore have been included in payments from 21st November 2019 through to your final UC payment on 21st May 2020.

    You should also have a Work Allowance applied to the calculation from 15th July 2019 which means the earnings deduction should also have reduced but which means that you should have have got to keep all or some of your SSP for that period.
  • Tiggywigs
    Tiggywigs Community member Posts: 10 Listener
    I was receiving Statutory sick pay and the benefit I received was reduced, the company I worked for wouldn't give sick pay persay only the bare minimum ssp.
  • Tiggywigs
    Tiggywigs Community member Posts: 10 Listener
    "You should also have a Work Allowance applied to the calculation from 15th July 2019" Can you expand on this please?
    There is a letter on UC We owe you £653.69. This is because the benefit system has recently recalculated your UC entitlement and generated an underpayment towards your LCWRA element. Could this be the Work Allowance you have mentioned?
    Thank you so much.
  • calcotti
    calcotti Community member Posts: 10,005 Championing
    edited May 2023
    Tiggywigs said:
    "You should also have a Work Allowance applied to the calculation from 15th July 2019" Can you expand on this please?
    If you have LCWRA a Work Allowance applies which means that some of your earnings are ignored. That means that the earnings deduction is reduced.
    You say you were getting SSP. SSP is treated as earning and the earnings deduction calculation would originally have been calculated on the whole amount (assuming you have no children on the claim). Now the Work Allowance disregard should be applied.
    https://www.entitledto.co.uk/help/work-allowance-universal-credit

    You should be able to see new UC calculations on your journal. You can compare the new statements with the amounts you previously received. (The old statements be no longer be able to see on your journal now you can't see those otherwise you previously downloaded them.) 
  • Tiggywigs
    Tiggywigs Community member Posts: 10 Listener
    You lovely people are awesome. I truly didn't have a clue. 
    I had a dispute with DWP the month I retired 6 May 2020. They clawed back £248.01 advising I was not entitled to this money https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2020-03-05/hcws146 even when I produced statement re transition from UC to State Pension. They had to reimburse the amount taken from my pension.
    Thank you all so much appreciated.
  • calcotti
    calcotti Community member Posts: 10,005 Championing
    edited May 2023
    Tiggywigs said:
    You lovely people are awesome. I truly didn't have a clue. 
    I had a dispute with DWP the month I retired 6 May 2020. They clawed back £248.01 advising I was not entitled to this money https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2020-03-05/hcws146 even when I produced statement re transition from UC to State Pension. They had to reimburse the amount taken from my pension.
    Thank you all so much appreciated.
    They would have been correct to reduce the final UC payment due after reducing pension age by the account of State Pension you were entitled to for the overlapping period. I have read elsewhere that in practice they generally ignore that unless a State Pension payment has actually been made in which case they do deduct it.
  • Tiggywigs
    Tiggywigs Community member Posts: 10 Listener
    Calcotti that I did know but what the reduced they clawed back. My assessment period was 15 April to 14th May payable I retired 6 May 2020. Statement UIN HCWS146 Reaching State Pension Age on Universal Credit, this got me reimbursed. 
  • Tiggywigs
    Tiggywigs Community member Posts: 10 Listener
    Calcotti that I did know. I did not get any state pension until the end of May early June. UC did not accept what I told them about a statement made in House of Commons by Therese Coffey. Eventually a minister for Welfare Delivery became involved and that resolved the situation.
  • Tiggywigs
    Tiggywigs Community member Posts: 10 Listener
    I have at last had a resolve from the DWP. What I went through with UC was horrendous. The payments on my statements did not match what was put in my bank. Overpayments taken back even though I was entitled to the payment. One month's rent taken back. After 3 years I have got everything I was entitled too, I also got my LCWRA payments too.