New Style ESA Credits Only & Carer's Allowance.

Repin

I need to attain support group status with ESA national insurance credits only, but I also want to claim Carer's Allowance for helping my mother. Can I do both?

Rachel_Scope

Hi @Repin and welcome to the community. I found some information on Carers UK:

"You can’t usually claim and be paid Carer’s Allowance if you’re already claiming State Pension or income-replacement benefits such as contribution-based Employment and Support Allowance or contribution- based Jobseeker’s Allowance. The exception is if these benefits amount to less than £83.30 a week, in which case Carer’s Allowance can top up your income to this amount. These benefits tend to pay more than Carer’s Allowance so this rarely applies."

It says that you should still apply as you may be eligible for an 'underlying entitlement' where any means-tested benefit you receive could increase, or you may be entitled to a mean-tested benefit.

Hope that helps.

Repin

I'm 99% sure if I claim new style ESA I would not receive any payment and the claim would be to gain me National Insurance credits - I want to be assessed and get support group status in place for the future. Currently, my savings are above £16,000 and I have never been employed so I would expect the outcome of an nsESA claim to award National Insurance credits only, so my question is, if I did get awarded the NI credits with nsESA and then was assessed as belonging to the support group, - what would happen if I claimed Carer's Allowance would the nsESA claim completely close because the Carer's Allowance would provide National Insurance credits? This I am guessing is what would happen but, I am optimistically wondering if it is possible that although the NI credits may no longer come from nsESA that the support group status would somehow remain as an underlying entitlement. In an ideal world I would like nsESA support group status underlying entitlement, ready to kick in at any point should I need, with my receiving payment and NI credits from Carer's Allowance as the active entitlement.