Will DLA be reduced if we get carers allowance?

carebear2611

i am a bit fed up with online benefit calculators as i cant seem to get the answers i need
i have been advised to apply for carers allowance.my husband works part time and claim dla
all i want to know is will his dla be reduced if we get carers allowance.
what is affected good or bad by applying and recieving it
thanks

JennysDad

Hi @carebear2611 and a warm welcome to you. I don't know the answers to your questions, so I'm going to look into it and find someone to get back to you.
Warmest best wishes,
Richard
@JennysDad

mikehughescq

Online benefit calculators fall well short of perfect and generally can’t deal with anything too complex.

You can only claim CA if he gets DLA care so let’s start there. 

If he does then whether or not you can claim CA would depend on your circumstances. We’d need to know more about that before commenting e.g. do you work; do you get ESA etc? His DLA would not reduce though. 

There are multiple advantages to claiming CA but again it depends on your circumstances.

carebear2611

i dont work previous medical probs but dont claim anything.
hubby works 24 hours a week.
gets dla mixture of middle and lower rate.
we get tax credits and small housing benefit.
thanks

Charles

Hi carebear2611, I believe that you being eligible and receiving carers allowance will not effect any DLA your husband is entitled to. 

mikehughescq

carebear2611 said:

i dont work previous medical probs but dont claim anything.
hubby works 24 hours a week.
gets dla mixture of middle and lower rate.
we get tax credits and small housing benefit.
thanks

Okay, but which is which? If he’s on DLA care then I’d assume that’s care as there’s no middle rate for mobility. You could then claim CA. It would count as income for Child Tax Credit only so there’s a potential reduction there but it would also result in Carers Premium being added to HB. You need face to face advice to figure out the gains and losses but I’d also get advice on your benefit scenario. 

aaronw3440

You lose any severe disability premiums you've got as the premiums go to pay for carers and you must earn no more than £120 a week and care for the person for a minimum of 35 hours per week allowance https://www.gov.uk/carers-allowance 

poppy123456

aaronw3440 said:

You lose any severe disability premiums you've got as the premiums go to pay for carers and you must earn no more than £120 a week and care for the person for a minimum of 35 hours per week allowance https://www.gov.uk/carers-allowance 

In this case there's no Severe disability premium being claimed because the other person works, and no JSA/IS or ESA is being claimed.

Charles

Good job Poppy.