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Losing Income related ESA

MickGill

So my wife starts to receive the state pension this month, I have been on income related ESA, yesterday I received a letter from the DWP saying my ESA will stop now that my wife is getting the state pension, her pension is classed as income, my ESA will remain open so that I can continue to get NI credits till my pension in 18 months time, I need to know will my housing benefits continue because my ESA claim is still open or will I have to claim UC.

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Comments

poppy123456

If you are the main claimant of the ESA then it can continue but whether there's any entitlement will depend on how much your partners state pension is per week. Although the state pension is deducted in full ESA would also include a pensioners premium so there may still be a small entitlement to ESA. Are you in the Support Group?

Has ESA done a calculation which includes your wife's State pension deduction and the Pensioners Premium?

If ESA continues then housing benefit will also continue, assuming you're named on the housing benefit claim.

You can use a benefits calculator to see if it's better to claim UC or remain on the ESA. You will need to claim UC as a couple and your wife's State pension will be deducted in full.

Are either of you claiming a disability benefit?

MickGill

Thanks for the swift reply Poppy, yes im the main ESA claimant i am in the work related activity group , we both recieve PIp my wife is on the higher rates and i am on the lower mobility rate , i do have a small private pension also.( Has ESA done a calculation which includes your wife's State pension deduction and the Pensioners Premium? ) yes but i see nothing about a Pensioners Premium .

MickGill

Forgot to add ESA will be nil, but the claim remains open to pay my NI, i claim carers allowance for my wife, she claims for me but this will of course stop.

Albus_Alumni

Hey there @MickGill and welcome to the community.

I can see Poppy is already helping you here, but I just wanted to pop in quickly and say hi. 😁

MickGill

Thank you Albus , and Hi back at ya 😉

poppy123456

Whether there’s any entitlement will depend on the figures and I would need more information for me to be able to advise further.

How much state pension will she be receiving each week? How much per week is your pension? Did your ESA start before or after April 2017?

Is your PIP just the mobility part and no daily living?

Sorry for all the questions but without the answers to those i can’t advise. If you don’t want to give that information I totally understand. You can get some expert advice from an agency near you.

If there’s no entitlement to ESA then your housing benefit will end and you will need to claim UC. However, whether there’s any entitlement to that will depend on her state pension amount, how much you’re entitled to for your rent and how much your pension is.

Both your pensions would be deducted in full so there maybe no entitlement to UC either.

MickGill

Thanks Poppy , my Wife pension is £195 a week , yes i only get the lower mobility component of PIP although that is not counted as income according to the letter from the DWP , my private pension is £316 a month, i phoned the DWP and the lady there said this is a pound for pound deduction so we will be no worse off neither will we be better off, my ESA stops 26th of June and I'm starting to panic . i have filled a online form in to housing benefits in Wigan council , they will not speak to people on the phone ,

poppy123456

Thanks. What about your ESA did that claim start before or after April 2017?

PIP isn’t means tested so doesn’t count as income for any benefits.

MickGill

Before, Poppy Thanks .

poppy123456

Thank you for all that information. The calculation for your ESA will look like the following..

ESA couples .. £142.25

WRAG £35.95

Pensioner Premium £154.75 (because you're in the WRAG)

Carers Premium £45.60. Total before deductions = £378.55/week.

Deduction for SP (State pension) £195. Your pension £72.92/week.

Total amount payable after deductions = £110.63/week ESA payable.

Although your wife's Carers allowance payment will stop because she reaches state pension age and her SP is more than the CA she will still have an underlying entitlement to it. This means that the carers premium will still be included in the ESA calculation.

I also noticed that her SP amount is less than the New state pension amount of £221.20/week so please check her amount. If her SP is more than this then your ESA amount will be less.

Their calculation is definitely incorrect and they haven't included the pensioner premium. You need to ring them and tell them she's reaching state pension age and they haven't included that in the calculation.

As there's entitlement to ESA then HB will continue.

If you claim UC then you will most definitely be worse off! You will of course eventually be migrated to ESA but there will be some Transitional Protection in place so you won't be worse off when you migrate.

I hope this helps and sorry for the delay in replying.

MickGill

Thanks Poppy here is a copy of the run down sent to me my the DWP .

poppy123456

I can see some personal details on that screenshot so I’ve flagged it to a member of the scope team to protect your identity.

In that screenshot it says you are both carers. Who are you claiming carers allowance for? You didn’t mention that in your comments.

It took me a while to work that out but I can see what they’ve done now. They have taken carers allowance off for your partner but carers allowance stops because their SP is more than the CA. For this reason it shouldn’t continue to be deducted.

You need to ring them and point that out to them.
Edit to add, if you do claim carers allowance yourself then the calculation I did will change slightly.

Jimm_Alumni

Hi @MickGill, I just removed your screenshot just now to protect your personal information! Please remember to be careful with things like your name, address, national insurance number and do not share them online. It's for your own safety. 😊

MickGill

Thanks Poppy i claim carers for my wife and she claims for me hope this helps .

MickGill

May I ask, please. We live in a council home, I will lose HB because ESA is stopped, if I make my wife the rent account holder could she claim a rent rebate through the council instead of us having to claim UC just for the HB.

poppy123456

You said your PIP is just standard mobility and no daily living. This can't be correct because for your wife to claim CA for you then your PIP must also include the daily living part.

The ESA calculation you posted did include the pensioner premium. I also advised that they have continued to include the deduction for your partners carers allowance, which isn't correct. When they reach state pension age the deduction for carers allowance would stop because carers allowance would not continue due to their SP being more than the carers allowance. This means that your ESA being reduced to zero is incorrect. You need to ring them tomorrow when they open and tell them that error. As there will be some entitlement to Income Related ESA then your HB will continue.

Your wife will not be able to claim HB in her name because you are a mixed aged couple. It will only continue if there's entitlement to Income Related ESA.

MickGill

Thank you so much Poppy, i shall call them first thing tomorrow morning.

poppy123456

You're welcome. Please can you also check what PIP award you have because it it's just mobility then your partner shouldn't be claiming carers allowance for looking after you. https://www.gov.uk/carers-allowance/eligibility

MickGill

Yes i get the low mobilty and daily living rate .

poppy123456

Thank you. Are there any other adults living with you? If so do they either claim a qualifying disability benefit such as PIP/ADP daily living, DLA mid/high rate care or AA? Or are they registered blind?

Again, sorry for all the constant questions but to give the correct advice I need all the correct information. Depending on the answer to that question there maybe entitlement to Severe disability Premium, which will increase your ESA even further.