esa

ulllass

hi. i am getting the standard rate of pip. 300 a month roughly. i am in the middle os a messy divorce. i have looked into getting esa, i don't understand it at all. no idea what group i will be in. plus do i wait till the divorce is over. was married 37 years and been sep 16 months, i would appreciate any help please..

[Deleted User]

Hi ulllass

I'm glad you have asked this question.

If your only income is PIP, then you must take steps to make another benefit claim as well - at least one, in fact.  PIP is only supposed to pay for some of the extra costs of disability, and of course you also need to eat, and pay for your accommodation, and your energy bills, and so on. 

The benefits system is changing quite a lot at present, so it isn't possible  to generalise about which ones you should claim. Universal credit for new claims has replaced 6 other means-tested benefits in some parts of the country but not others. You can claim this whether or not you are working. So this is a postcode lottery at present!

If you have worked recently but cannot work now, you may need contributory ESA. In some areas, you can claim housing benefit to help with rent. You may have children - money for them would be through either universal credit or tax credits. You probably need to claim council tax reduction, and different councils calculate this differently from each other.

Do try the benefits checker on our website it will highlight which benefits you can claim and I think it will make  things much clearer.

https://www.scope.org.uk/support/disabled-people/benefits/check

Best wishes

Gill_Scope