What are the benefits of Contribution Based ESA?

B1AVENGER

Quick outline: Never worked since leaving school at 16, now in my 50's.

Always been on income support, incapacity benefit, ESA, support group etc.

Since being forced to migrate to Universal Credit, I am now on New Style ESA with support group and Universal Credit LCWRA.

As like many others here all my letters have said i was always on Income Related ESA.

But as we now know thats changed me to Contribution Based/New Style ESA.

So im presuming ive had 40+ years of Class 1 Stamps paid into my pension.

Anyway, the question really is. What's the benefit of Contribution based / New Style ESA now?

I'm guessing it means ill probably end up with the full State Pension?

Which may hinder other benefits down the line like Pension Credit.

However in the here and now… My Local Council in there wisdom have stopped automatic Council Tax support for non working claimants and basing it all on income.

I have never paid Council Tax.

So now as the New Style ESA is counted as income i have to pay 50%

This dosn't sit right with me as there has been no changes apart from the name in benefit.

I know they are currently being taken to court over this as it has affected thousand of disabled people in the same situation.

So what can i do? Could i stop claiming ESA and get the same equivelent from Universal Credit , or would it be less? If so allowing me to be under the Council Tax threshold as most Universal Credit isnt counted?

Would this be a bad move?

Im sure i read someone did exactly this.

Sorry for the rant, but im already losing out on increases in ESA and Housing and LCWRA etc as all those going up just gets taken off my transitional protection.

So essentially getting less and less for the next few years until all my Transitional Protection has gone. And now the added Council Tax bill, I'll be £1400 a year worse off from now on.

Yes i fully understand the notion of that its all free tax payers money i recieve. But as with most people on here, being severley disabled all my life it's been through no fault of my own.

Thoughts?

Kimi87

If your UC claim ever ended due to going over the capital limits, and you later went under by enough to reclaim, the NS ESA still being active would mean no new WCA for UC & the LCWRA would start automatically as it did when you migrated.

Otherwise if you ended your NS ESA claim and went to 100% UC, the monetary amount would remain the same.

It would be wise to get an estimate of your Council Tax Reduction award on 100% UC before you make an irreversible decision, your local authority or local welfare rights organisation familiar with the rules for your area should be able to assist.

https://advicefinder.turn2us.org.uk/

You can check your pension forecast here:

https://www.gov.uk/check-state-pension

B1AVENGER

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/comment/1108267#Comment_1108267

Thanks for that info.

Having to do a new WCA assesment is interesting and something not worth the hassle for.

However I don't believe i'd ever go over the 6k but still, great advice.

Are you saying if i did stop ESA and switch to just UC id get the same amount in total?

I believe the Council Tax support only ignores the housing element of UC, the support element of ESA, the LCWRA part and allows a further small discount for disabled people. So if i went all UC then all of the ESA switch across maybe become counted and id be even worse off for Countil Tax support and fall into an even higher band of say paying 75%

Its all very complictaed!

But the main gripe is, no amounts have changed just the name of the benfit and now i have to pay. Thats just dosnt seem right. Hence the court case.

Kimi87

Yes the money would be exactly the same in total. Instead of having the £609.05 deducted from UC, UC would pay that £609.05.

It's hard to predict the future, I also would have said I'd never go anywhere near let alone over the £16k capital limit but I find myself in a situation with an inheritance where it's a very real possibility after some extremely unforeseen unpredictable events.

I'm also interested in the outcome of these court cases and how various LA's might change their approach as a result.

Unfortunately as CTR is decided on at a local level and each local authority has different rules it's very hard to advise on individual cases from here.

Hence my previous advice to seek further help locally.