Pension credit and carers element

bfint

Hi I'm caring for my mum and she gets pension credit if i got carers element for caring for her would it affect her pension credit

Emilee

It can do @bfint. It depends whether her pension credit contained SDP or not.

bfint

TThank You @Emilee were would it be able to find that information out do u no

Adrian_Scope

Hello @bfint.

Further to Emilee's advice:

To qualify for SDP your mum will need to be:

• Receiving Attendence Allowance (or PIP/DLA), and;
• Living alone (or treated as living alone because other people are ignored, for example due to them receiving a disability benefit)

Plus, no one can be claiming Carer's Allowance or the Carer Element of UC for caring for her.

Her SDP would not be paid separately, it would be included in her pension credit amount, so some people receive it without realising.

It isn’t usually listed separately on a Pension Credit statement. Instead, it’s typically included within the overall calculation of an award and often built into the Guarantee Credit figure.

The best way for her to check would be for her to call the Pension Credit helpline and ask them to confirm.

angelmariya

If you get the carers element for looking after your mum, it usually won’t affect her Pension Credit. But if you claim Carer’s Allowance, it might slightly change her benefits, like stopping extra amounts she could get. It’s a good idea to double-check your situation, just to be sure.

Emilee

The carers element of UC is meant to have the same impact @angelmariya, in practice it doesn't always happen because sometimes the systems don't line up, but this is unintended and cases where it hasn't been applied properly, will eventually become recoverable and viewed as overpayments.