Hi there! HELP! Does anybody anywhere understand how UC works?!

tippi

Hi, I spoke to Poppy recently on here re: my disabled son being moved off ESA as he's moved in with his partner. He and his partner have a UC interview this Friday and I will go along to support them. The more I read about UC the more confused I get. I really don't understand It tbh and I'd like to be more informed before Friday. Could some kind soul out there give me a SHORT 'Noddy's Guide' to UC if that's possible. Please don't refer me to some web site as they just confuse the hell out of me. My son got ESA, he's in the support group, assessed as not ever able to work, and gets PIP. Thanks for you help, Chris

poppy123456

UC is a monthly benefit paid monthly in arrears and includes many different elements ranging from couples standard allowance, child element, LCWRA element (same ESA Support Group) housing element (replaced housing benefit) child care, etc etc.

As i mentioned on your other thread if your son's ESA claim remained active as a NI credits only claim then he will be entitled to the LCWRA element from the start of his claim. (£390.06/month. As a couple, if at least one of them is 25 or over they will be entitled to the standard couples allowance £572.82/month.

If they rent their home they will also be entitled to the housing element. If it's privately rented they will be entitled to the 1 bedroom rate of local housing allowance. You can check the rates for their area here. https://lha-direct.voa.gov.uk/ you will need to convert it to a monthly payment because it will tell you the weekly rate. You just "times" the number by 52 and divide by 12.

As your son claims daily living PIP if no one is claiming either carers allowance or carers element of UC for looking after him then his partner can claim carers element £186.85/month. Assuming they look after him for at least 35 hours per week.

All those elements will make up their maximum UC entitlement before any deductions take place.

As his partner is working if they include the LCWRA element from the start of his claim there will be a work allowance included, which means they can receive a certain amount of earnings each month before the 55% deductions apply. If they claim for help with the rent it will be £379/month, if they don't it will be £631/month. For every £1/month of earnings received over this there will be a 55p deduction.

Whether there's any entitlement will depend on how much earnings his partner receives each month and what their maximum UC entitlement is.

Did they use a benefits calculator to check entitlement before applying? It's a lot to go through if there's no entitlement.

Each assessment period lasts for 30 days and starts on the date they submitted their claim. At the end of that assessment period they will receive a statement on their journal and this will tell them all the elements they are entitled to, as well as any earnings his partner receives. It will include all the deductions and then tell them how much (if anything) will be paid into their bank. Their first payment will be 1 month and 1 week after they first submitted their claim. After this they will be paid their UC on the same date each month, unless it falls on either a weekend or bank holiday and then they will receive it on the last working day.

They will be offered an advance payment but this doesn't mean there's definitely entitlement to UC. It will be based on their maximum UC entitlement. This does need to be repaid back so please be aware of that.

If your son is entitled to LCWRA element from the start of his claim he will have no work requirements. If his partner claims carers element they will also have no work requirements, even though they are currently working.

I hope this helps and if you have any further questions please do ask.

tippi

Thanks Poppy, I've learnt more from that than hours trawling on the internet! Doing a rough back of **** packet calculation it comes out at +£48 a month, because (I assume) Guy's partner is in a well paid nursing job. I hope I've missed something tbh as Guy got £500 monthly on ESA. With a new baby, a big mortgage £500 a month is a hell of a lot to lose. Boy, does disability suck. All my wife and I have done for 15 years is fight and fight on Guy's behalf against a wall of bureaucracy. It never stops. Thanks yet again for taking the trouble to reply Poppy, much appreciated, regards, Chris

tippi

Not sure why they blanked out '****'??????????

tippi

They obviously don't like '****' on here - how about 'cigarette'?

poppy123456

You’re welcome. If they are not claiming for help with the rent then the work allowance will be £631. Once the baby is born they will be entitled to an extra £259.58/month from the assessment period in which the baby is born. 

Unfortunately because UC is means tested then it does take into consideration both of their circumstances. Yes his partners earnings will reduce the amount they are entitled to after the work allowance. Earnings have always affected means tested benefits. 

tippi

Hi Poppy, sorry to trouble you again. I'm trying to get a rough idea of the figures before Friday's interview. Without going into all the nitty-gritty I think Guy MAY be entitled to LCWRA £390, Couples Allow £572, Carers element £186, child element £259 totalling £1407. I don't know his partner's earnings but for this (as my maths is bad!) I've guessed at net income £2631 less £631 = £2000 x 55p per £ = £1100. So £1407 - £1100 = UC total of £307. Considerably less that his ESA. Can you see anything glaringly amiss with the above? As before, many thanks for taking the trouble to help us through this somewhat difficult time, regards, Chris

poppy123456

Couples £578.82

LCWRA element £390.06

Child element £259.58

Carers element £185.86

Total before deductions £1,414.32/month.

Earnings £2,631 - £631/WA = £2,000 x 0.55 = £1,100 deductions.

Total UC payable £314.32/month.

Please also be aware that those figures are assuming his ESA continued with NI credits towards his state pension. If it didn't then he'll need to go through the work capability assessment again, which means that there will be a waiting period for the LCWRA element to be paid and it won't be until the 4th assessment period.

Also their UC will be based on earnings received each month so their UC could increase if their partner receives less earnings and decrease the more they earn. It will also depend on how often they are paid, if it's 4 weekly for example then there will be 1 month a year where they will recieve 2 lots of earnings, this means that their UC will reduce to zero for that month.

As advised in a previous comment, they will not know how much they will be entitled to when they attend the appointment on Friday. They need to wait until they receive their statement to know how much they will be entitled to for the first payment and each individual month after that when their statements are produced.

It would help you if you could find out exactly how much earnings his partner receives.

Don't forget about child benefit too, which isn't part of UC.

tippi

Thanks Poppy, that's fantastic. It's down to you that I'm at last starting to get a handle on this UC!!!!!!!

poppy123456

You're welcome. Glad my advice has helped!