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Deprivation of Capital Allowance Rules

PRG66

Hi, I am on Universal Credit in the Support Group. I am registered as Self Employed Carpenter, 16hrs allowable work. In reality I have not done any work fo years due to being too unwell. Consequently UC have forshortened my page to basis data of zero hrs, zero income - agree, click here.
In April/ May 2025 I spent the £5,000 in my savings on various legitimate household bills, tool insurance, car repairs, tools and equipment, private medications (not available on NHS) etc etc.
ON 18th June I received an £11,500 inheritance. I then proceeded to spend that on further legitimate things, such as £2,000 to my disabled son, a family holdiay for 4 including about £750 holiday cash, more tools, some worth over £1,000.
By 18th August my savings were back down to less than £6,000. I then told UC what had happened. They want ALL bank Statements going back to May 2023. Fair enough.

In my mind, I have every right to spend that £5,000 in my savings on anything I like (within reason) and spend it at any rate at any time I like, including the month before receiving another gift. However and obviously, it does appear that I have simply cleared my accounts ready for the next load of cash. I am wondering how far the Deprivation of Capital Allowance Assessors will go to try to prove I'm depriving my savings to avoid losing my benefits. As always, this is producing some anxiety and worry because I am already used to corporate gaslighting and corporate abuse occuring on a regular basis.

To my knowledge ALL my bank statements going back forever show NO 'untoward' activity, however I can foresee all kinds of nonsense being thrown at me.

I would be grateful for any feedback, thanks.

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Comments

Sivam

MY daughter is just in the process of changing from ESA to UC. She had £6000 in and ISA and around £2000 in her bank account as she has been saving for a holiday (which she is now on.) She has Cerebral Palsy and a learning disability. She has to see a Podiatrist privately for treatment not carried out on NHS which she has just paid for. She has closed her ISA and the money transferred to her bank, a lot of which has gone on her holiday as she has to pay for a carer. Because the checks were done prior to all this her weekly amount is being CUT by (an unknown amount - yet to be disclosed.) What do we do?

OverlyAnxious

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/comment/1057968#Comment_1057968

Hi,

She should update her savings on the last day of the UC assessment period. It's very easy to do using the online portal and means the deduction will always be correct based on her savings each month.

She does not need to update savings every month, only if they go up or down through another £250 threshold (£6250, £6500, £6750, etc) on the final day of the assessment period, compared to the final day of the previous assessment period.

If her savings remain below £6000, there is technically no need to update UC again until they go above £6000 again, as there are no deductions made for savings below £6000.

OverlyAnxious

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/137602/deprivation-of-capital-allowance-rules

Hi,

The main issue I can see there is giving your son £2000. It doesn't matter whether he's disabled or not. Giving money away to relatives will usually be classed as deprivation of capital.

PRG66

Thanks for the feedback Overly Anxious,

sorry for the repetition, I posted two versions thinking the first had got lost in the ether. Then I answered to you and Ranald in the same reply; here's that answer posted again:

Thanks for the feedback Overly Anxious. Interestingly and ironically, my Mum's solicitor who handled the inheritance invited me to change the Will for a small fee so that my son was included at source. Interestingly when I inherited before from my Dad, I gave my son £3,000 and the assessors accepted that as a valid use of funds. Rightly or wrongly, I decided that to ask my mum's solicitor to change the Will, really would be an act of concealment by shifting the transaction behind the visiblitity of my bank statements. I will be printing out the emails with my mum's solicitor which confirm that was an option; so that I can at least say I was NOT trying to conceal this payment. It's all so blooming ironic. Thanks for the feedback Ranald. Yes indeed, you're right, why would I invest in tools? And my answer to you can be the only answers I have for anyone, because they're all absolutley true.First of all I've been through this already when I inherited from my Dad. The assessors said: -"Well, as long as you're not buying a Ferrari, it's ok"- and: "Oh, tools - you're a carpenter, that's ok then". . . The following may sound like a fantastic concoction, and it may sound like I'm blowing my trumpet for no valid reason. It may all escape the sensibilities of the authorities, but like my answer above to Overly Anxious, the following is the only answer (s) I have and writing it all down in full here is very helpful, I can make it shorter and more concise later for the UC at our 'assessment meeting' next week. So thanks for playing devil's advocate: I was a single parent for years; I had a court order. I was in and out of court, trying to protect my kids from their disfunctional (personality disordered) mother who tried to abduct her kids through parental alienation and manipulation. She abused them chronically on FORCED contact visits until she died from her self abuse. The whole thing went on for years and resulted in the entire family becoming traumatised. I have cPTSD and so do my kids as a consequence. Two of the kids were put into a FORCED adoption despite two social workers saying they should go with me. That really messed up the family and caused my collapse, homelessness and near bankruptcy. That's why I got Council housing and put in the support group originally on UC. Also as a consequence of the trouble that caused I could only work as a volunteer part time. I'm a traditional Arts & Crafts woodworker/ furniture maker. I am also a Tradtional Mortise & Tenon Structural Carpenter and Sawyer. I've been trained in sustainable woodland management and timber conversion. I'm also a trained workplace counseller and served as a voluntary director of a not for profit woodland crafts 'Occupational Therapy' organisation from 2000 to 2010. It's taken decades to develop the people skills, the woodworking skills and the reputation to call myself an expert in this field. I intend setting up another community group doing the same as a part time volunteer therapist / teacher as a 'retired carpenter'. It is a way of life, it IS my life and the only life I have left at 65. It's ALL I have to leave my children too. I'm in a Council Bedsit, not my own nice house in the suburbs (if only). There has been several obscure traditions of Carpenters having special rights to their toolkits (as personal possessions, not business assets) and also the old saying that we should never never ever sell them except in dire circumstances. Infact they should be maintained and expanded where possible. I must also say I've had over £20,000 worth of kit stolen over the years (yes I have a crime number for most of that). Most of that uninsured due to 'technicalities' over security (stored in 'communal areas'). So in reality, all I've done is replaced what's been stolen, lost and or should have been included in the itinary in the first place. Some of these tools are 200 years old, as a collection for use in occupational therapy it's impossible to put a price on them. When people offer to buy them they're looking for a bargain on one or two items, as a collection they're unsellable, except for a silly bargain price. Lastly I'm in a Council Bedsit and my 8th Housing Officer in ten years has just done a U turn from the 7th Housing Officer and told me I have to remove ALL my kit from the communal storage areas where the other residents have said it's ok. That's cost another £1,000 in insurance and is another stressful nightmare as I try to find the support from local agencies to set up elsewhere. Lots of interest but no definite YES yet. I know I'm in for a hard battle. The UC have asked me for bank statements going back to April 2023. 100 pages of paper, my bank manager rolled his eyes and said "Oh God, Not again". The rest of this afternoon and tomorrow I will be colour coding the lot to explain ALL the various 'expenses' that are anomalous ready for the meeting next week. Thanks again you both for the feedback, if you can think of anything else, devil's advocate or whatever, please do comment.

Holly_Alumni

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