SDP

[Deleted User]

Hello all, after 14 months of battling to get PIP, I finally won my day in court. Now, I am on UC, ESA, support group, PIP both components. I rang all concerned to inform them of PIP award. When I spoke to ESA, I asked about the SDP as I live alone with no carer. They told me that Universal Credit now deal with that and to ask them. I have asked many times through my journal but have not had a reply. Am I entitled to this or not? No one seems to know. My PIP was backdated to June 2017. Any info gratefully received, thank you.

poppy123456

Hi,

As you're claiming both ESA and UC, your ESA must be contributions based yes? If it was Income related then you would be claiming UC for limited capability for work and not ESA. In this case as it must be CB ESA then unfortunately the premiums aren't paid on this or Universal credit. 

[Deleted User]

Thank you. My ESA is contribution based but ends very soon so I presume it would then be paid via Universal Credit. The support group element of ESA is already paid by Universal Credit. It's all very confusing as to my mind everything was supposed to be paid through Universal Credit. As clear as mud!!!

poppy123456

Your ESA won't end because contribution based is not time limited for those in the support group. What's most like happening is that ESA pay you the ESA then it's taken off your UC. 
 As stated the premiums, including SDP are not payable on UC and as you're claiming CB ESA they aren't payable on the either. 

[Deleted User]

Thank you for your advice. ?

[Deleted User]

Further to previous posts, I have just received a letter about ESA. They know I was placed in support group but they have said my contribution based ESA will end after one year. So, what happens now? Will it be paid through UC?

poppy123456

Are you 100% sure you're in the Support Group? CB ESA support group doesn't end after 365 days, it's paid for as long as you remain in there. Those placed into the WRAG are time limited to 365 days. 

[Deleted User]

I received the letter on my UC journal. It said I had been awarded LCWRA and I no longer had to look for work because of my health. UC pay me extra because of this. Is this not classed as the support group?

DK30

Hi @bigmomma. 
Yes LCWRA is support group. But you don't get SDP on Universal Credit. I am on LCWRA and enhanced PIP and not entitled to SDP. LCWRA pay more than the ESA support group. You do lose about £40 per week on UC. But hopefully one day the government will have a heart and not punish us that have to claim UC. 

[Deleted User]

Thank you, I have spoken to ESA this morning who still confirm my ESA will end after a year, this November. I (once again) mentioned I thought I was in support group and they  told me to ring UC. I then spoke to UC who said my ESA should continue until re assessment at least which is April next year. Really at a lost with this one! Neither want to take responsibility. I now have to ring ESA back and tell them what UC said. Surely they are all part of DWP? Do they not liase with each other?

DK30

I had a simular problem. I was on ESA support group. Lost medical assessment. Wrongly advised by DWP to claim UC during tribunal.  Then during appeal I was awarded enhanced PIP for both care and mobility. Then won my appeal for ESA. But had to stay on UC. So lost my SDP. It's not fair Is it. But nothing we can do ☹

[Deleted User]

Unfortunately it’s a constant battle, no wonder people get ill with the stress of it all. It would help considerably though if they all read from the same song sheet. It’s a different story from each person you speak to. Never mind, onwards and upwards! ?

[Deleted User]

Unfortunately it’s a constant battle, no wonder people get ill with the stress of it all. It would help considerably though if they all read from the same song sheet. It’s a different story from each person you speak to. Never mind, onwards and upwards! ?

[Deleted User]

HI  bigmomma and DK30 

It sounds like bigmomma has an ongoing claim to universal credit now.

There are no premiums in universal credit (UC). They weren't written into the regulations. The limited capability for work related activity (the old support group component) is higher in UC than in ESA, but there is no actual acknowledgement of disability on its own. 

What I've written below might apply to you.

The recent cases taken to judicial review by the law firm Leigh Day were won - the government has had to announce that they want to make sure that people entitled to Enhanced Disability Premium or Severe Disability Premium, in their ESA claims, or both, don't lose out in the transfer to Universal Credit, even if they transfer to UC at an early stage. 

The regulations haven't gone through parliament yet, so we don' t  know exactly what they will say,  however.  Some people will have their benefit entitlement "transitionally protected", which means that they will continue to get the amount of money they used to have under old rules. 

It isn't clear whether there will be any extra payments for people who weren't claiming income-related ESA before they had UC, for example where the only reason that they couldn't get ESA was that they had been refused PIP, but that  decision had since been overturned.

Another example of people who have lost money because of UC is people like DK30 who were wrongly advised to claim UC pending an ESA appeal, and then couldn't go back to ESA even though they won their ESA appeals. 

Do keep this in mind, and watch for further developments, as it may for example either be in the regulations when we get them, or be the subject of further legal action in the future. We seem to be at a stage where some of these injustices are getting to be the subject of legal action, and that legal action is succeeding. 

Gill_Scope