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Universal Credit and disabled child element and carers element

te1

Good morning

I am wondering if anyone can help or advise me as to whether my daughters Universal Credit payment is correct as I feel that the deductions they are taking from her might be incorrect. I have tried to navigate and search for answers but have just become totally confused 🫤 with it all.

Firstly

My daughter gets the extra disabled child element of £156.11 and also the extra carer element of £198.31 included in her UC payment every 4 weeks but they deduct £354.90 from her payment. Her daughter who has just turned 16 gets PIP at low rate daily living and high rate mobility I am not sure if this is the reason for the deductions but I always thought that PIP is not counted as income.

Secondly

My daughter is my carer and receives the £81.90 per week which is a 4 week amount of £327.60 am I correct in thinking that as she receives carers allowance for me that this could be the reason why she is being deducted the above amount of £354.90 which doesn’t really make sense to me. TIA

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Comments

poppy123456

UC is a monthly benefit, not 4 weekly. Yes, the £354.90 deduction is because of the carers allowance. The reason it's this much is because carers allowance is a weekly benefit and UC is a monthly benefit, there's 4.3 weeks in a month, not 4 weeks. To work out the monthly amount you times the weekly amount by 52 and then divide by 12. £81.90 x 52 divided by 12 = £354.90.

If she receives carers allowance every 4 weeks then there will be 1 month a year when she will receive 2 payments but the deduction will remain the same in that month.

Her daughter's PIP isn't means tested so will not affect her UC in a bad way.

te1

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/comment/893679#Comment_893679

Thank you for your reply, my mistake with the UC being monthly and not 4weekly.

I feel that it is so wrong and unfair for people who are a carer for a parent or someone in the family to be paid the carers allowance but then they lose all of that payment in another way by being deducted from their UC especially when it is the disabled child element and carer element that she gets for her daughter that she loses because of me.
So in actual fact she cares for me and is doing it for free, that now makes me feel really guilty as she is financially worse off because she does nearly everything for me and is a cost to her with the extra fuel she uses to get to me and help me with washing, showering etc and also cooking my meals.

poppy123456

She's not worse off by claiming carers allowance, her maximum entitlement to benefits remains the same, whether she claims carers allowance or not.

Are you claiming any other benefits other than the disability benefit, if so which ones please?

Are you living alone or with other adults? If with other adults are they registered blind or claiming disability benefits their self such as PIP/ADP daily living, DLA mid/.high rate care or AA?

te1

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/comment/893806#Comment_893806

I am on PIP low rate for daily living and enhanced for mobility and also receive ESA in the support group.

te1

I live on my own

poppy123456

Thank you. I was about to ask which ESA you're claiming but I've looked back at your previous threads and way back in 2019 I advised you about New style ESA so will assume this is the ESA you're claiming, is that correct?

If so then my thoughts about the Severe disability Premium are irrelevant because the SDP isn't payable when claiming NsESA.

It's only payable when claiming the old contributions based or Income Related. It hasn't been possible to claim either of those for many people since end of Dec 2018.

te1

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/comment/893840#Comment_893840

Yes I claim NsESA as I had to give up work in 2019 due to my physical health and mobility it was based on my national insurance contributions for previous 2 years or more. I have worked all my life and had no idea what or if I was entitled to any benefits as I had never been in this situation before. My ESA will stop in couple of months as I will get my state pension at long last as I was one of the many WASPI women.

poppy123456

Have you checked entitlement to Pension Credit? I'd advise you to do that. As there's no financial gain for your daughter to claim carers allowance and she's already claiming carers element for her child, if she cancels the carers allowance you'll have entitlement to Severe disability Premium. This is paid in with Pension credit and will increase your maximum weekly income by £81.50/week.

You can use a Pension credit calculator to see if there's any entitlement. You will need to fill it in as if you've already reached state pension age.

https://www.gov.uk/pension-credit-calculator even If there's a very small entitlement to PC this will then entitle you to full council tax reduction and maximum housing benefit (if you rent your home)

It may take as long as 6 months for a PC claim.

te1

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/comment/893901#Comment_893901

Thank you I will have a look at the pension credits calculator I am aware of pension credit as have seen it on the Martin Lewis show and as he says even if you only are entitled to a few pence it opens up other gateways for things like council tax reduction.
As I have four daughters and all of them live within reasonable driving distance to me and help me on occasions as well would it be worthwhile that one of them is involved and is my primary carer for carers allowance and I agree to this?

poppy123456

A different daughter can claim carers allowance for looking after you providing they don’t earn anymore than £151/week.

Your other daughter would need to cancel her claim before someone else can claim it.

However, that would prevent you from being entitled to the Severe Disability Premium and may mean there’s no entitlement to Pension Credit.