DLA and change of circumstance on UC

ghostglee

Hi, just after a bit of advice.
My son has been awarded DLA and his claim date is April 9th. I tried to do the change of circumstance on UC but because i have gone from a joint claim to a single claim since end of September it’s not letting me input the date as it’s before the claim date. So now that I’ve gone to a single claim will I not receive the backdated amount from the 9th April?
Thank you

Darking

Take a deep breath because you will not lose out on your backdated amount from April 9th. Dealing with the Universal Credit system after a claim separation is stressful, but the online portal's technical limitations do not change your legal entitlement to that money. The reason the system is blocking you is purely technical, as the online journal only looks at the start date of your current single claim from the end of September. It physically will not let you input a change date that predates this specific claim setup.

To get your full backpay, the DWP needs to process the adjustment manually across both claim periods. The backpay from April 9th to the end of September will be reassessed under your former joint claim, while the backpay from the end of September to the present will be applied to your current single claim. Because DLA is a qualifying benefit, Universal Credit rules state that a DLA award for a child must be backdated to the start of the DLA claim date, overriding standard reporting deadlines.

You can get this sorted by logging into your online journal and sending a message under the payments category. Clearly explain that your son has been awarded DLA backdated to April 9th, but the online system prevents you from entering that date due to your move to a single claim in September. Ask them to perform a manual recalculation for both your previous joint claim period and your current single claim period. If you care for your son for at least 35 hours a week and his DLA includes the middle or higher rate of care, make sure to explicitly state in that message that you also wish to claim the Carer Element backdated to April 9th.

The backdated money will be paid out as a lump-sum arrears payment once a Case Manager reviews your account and completes the manual recalculation. If you encounter any hesitation from a helpline agent, gently remind them that child DLA changes must be applied to previous joint claim assessment periods under the late notification exceptions for qualifying benefits. Hope this is helpful.