Housing Benefit with ESA help! - Page 2 — Scope | Disability forum
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Housing Benefit with ESA help!

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Comments

  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Community member Posts: 53,333 Disability Gamechanger
    @Adrian_Scope i'll be interested to know your thoughts on this one please? Thanks!
    I would appreciate it if members wouldn't tag me please. I have all notifcations turned off and wouldn't want a member thinking i'm being rude by not replying.
    If i see a question that i know the answer to i will try my best to help.
  • Adrian_Scope
    Adrian_Scope Posts: 10,821 Scope online community team
    Hello @PIPnewbie
    It is possible to claim for rent when living with grandparents but they would need a formal (commercial) tenancy agreement in place.
    I'd strongly advise that you don't have a tenancy drawn up and backdate it as this would be seen as fraud. But there's no reason they can't draw one up now and start the process. It would be worth looking into the LHA (local housing allowance) for a shared room/1 bedroom rate in the area as that's the maximum they'll help with. https://lha-direct.voa.gov.uk/

    I couldn't say for certain whether her claim for rent costs would be accepted by Universal Credit. As @poppy123456 mentioned, it would go to a decision maker who would look at whether they believed the tenancy contrived or not. The fact she has lived there rent free previously may work against her, however they don't always ask. Shelter has a little bit of information about this and may be able to help you further. Shelter - Renting from family.

    If she applies for housing benefit, this will be via Universal Credit so her ESA would also be transferred over. Some people have no problems with this as Regulation 19 means that her ESA award will move to UC, but unfortunately it isn't always a smooth transition and can mean a period of time where she's having to iron out any issues that arise.
    Community Manager
    Scope
  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Community member Posts: 53,333 Disability Gamechanger
    Thanks @Adrian_Scope, there's really not enough of information on the shelter website other than to confirm than renting from grandparents is possible. I did find something on the internet last time about the rent free period could possible be an issue but now i can't find what i read.

    Personally, i would still get some face to face advice before applying for UC because there's no guarantee that it will be possible to claim for help with the rent because they may know more about dealing with the rent free period since living there. 


    I would appreciate it if members wouldn't tag me please. I have all notifcations turned off and wouldn't want a member thinking i'm being rude by not replying.
    If i see a question that i know the answer to i will try my best to help.
  • PIPnewbie
    PIPnewbie Community member Posts: 298 Pioneering
    edited July 2019
    @poppy123456 @Adrian_Scope

    Thank you for the help guys. I appreciate it!

    Btw, what issues might arise that need ironing out?
  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Community member Posts: 53,333 Disability Gamechanger
    PIPnewbie said:

    Btw, what issues might arise that need ironing out?
    That will be the transition from ESA to UC if she claims it because the Support Group (LCWRA) isn't always automatically added. Lots of people have constant issues regarding this.

    Of course if the housing element can't be claimed then she won't need to claim UC, which is why the face to face advice is needed before proceeding any further.
    I would appreciate it if members wouldn't tag me please. I have all notifcations turned off and wouldn't want a member thinking i'm being rude by not replying.
    If i see a question that i know the answer to i will try my best to help.
  • PIPnewbie
    PIPnewbie Community member Posts: 298 Pioneering
    @poppy123456

    Thanks again.  So Citizens Advice is the best step next?
  • Adrian_Scope
    Adrian_Scope Posts: 10,821 Scope online community team
    Hello @PIPnewbie, as Poppy said, the ESA transition doesn't always happen as smoothly as it should and claimants are asked to hand in fit notes (when they shouldn't be), resulting in triggering a new WCA instead of the transferal of ESA. It should be a straight forward process but sometimes needs to be argued for. 

    Citizen's Advice may be able to give some information on the tenancy but Shelter may be better versed with how likely it is to be approved and not considered a contrived tenancy. 
    Community Manager
    Scope
  • PIPnewbie
    PIPnewbie Community member Posts: 298 Pioneering
    @Adrian_Scope

    Thanks for the advice.  How does she contact Shelter?  Their national helpline, or do they have individual offices? 
  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Community member Posts: 53,333 Disability Gamechanger
    They do have individual centres but that will depend on your area. Check here. https://england.shelter.org.uk/get_help

    I would appreciate it if members wouldn't tag me please. I have all notifcations turned off and wouldn't want a member thinking i'm being rude by not replying.
    If i see a question that i know the answer to i will try my best to help.
  • Adrian_Scope
    Adrian_Scope Posts: 10,821 Scope online community team
    Thanks for answering @poppy123456
    I hope that helps @PIPnewbie. Please let us know how you get on. :)
    Community Manager
    Scope
  • PIPnewbie
    PIPnewbie Community member Posts: 298 Pioneering
    Thanks @Adrian_Scope and @poppy123456

    She is definitely contacting Shelter tomorrow as well as going to Citizens Advice.

    In the meantime, she is wondering if she applies for Universal Credit to get the help with housing and for it to replace her ESA, and it takes 2-3 months, will she still get her ESA payments in the meantime?
  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Community member Posts: 53,333 Disability Gamechanger
    No, if she applies for UC her ESA will stop and transfer across, as previously advised. Her Support Group award will be honoured in UC but this most likely won't happen straight away. If it doesn't then she won't be paid the extra LCWRA element until it is.

    I would not advise her to apply for UC for the housing element until she's got that advice because it may not be possible to claim for housing because of that rent free period, which could potentially cause problems.
    I would appreciate it if members wouldn't tag me please. I have all notifcations turned off and wouldn't want a member thinking i'm being rude by not replying.
    If i see a question that i know the answer to i will try my best to help.
  • PIPnewbie
    PIPnewbie Community member Posts: 298 Pioneering
  • PIPnewbie
    PIPnewbie Community member Posts: 298 Pioneering
    @poppy123456
    @Adrian_Scope

    Help time again guys.

    So my partner went to Citizens Advice and they said because she lives with grandparents and they aren’t classed as close relatives she should be fine.

    They also said because she applied for housing benefit back in Jan ‘18 but didn’t follow up after a visit they attempted to the property, it will show she has attempted to pay rent since the beginning of her living with her grandparents.

    Anyway, I am visiting again so we just applied for Universal Credit on the laptop and we put all the info about her being disabled, on ESA, and PIP... and it’s defaulted to a standard job seeking page where she has a job coach, has to attend an interview, show how she’s looked for work, etc.  How did this happen?  I thought it automatically migrated.

    Now she is panicking and rightly so because if her ESA stops at all she can’t even pay her grandparents the rent they require!
  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Community member Posts: 53,333 Disability Gamechanger
    It's hardly ever a straight forward process when applying for UC, had you posted the question before applying then someone would have advised you.

    That process is correct, i'm afraid. She will be given a work coach for now and she will have to attend her local job centre for an appointment to confirm her identity. During this appointment she needs to ask her work coach to send the MPG1 form to ESA for her ESA award to be transferred across to UC. Until this is done she won't receive the extra LCWRA which is £336 per month. Once it's done they will add that element but it may take a few weeks or more. Hopefully it will be done by the time she receives her first payment but again this doesn't always happen. If it hasn't been done by that time, when it is done they will backdate all the money they owe her.

    Do bare in mind that there's a 5 week wait for her first payment for UC but she can ask for an advance payment to see her through this period. This will need to be repaid from future payments.

    She will also need to take a tenancy agreement with her to her local job centre, it will then be down to a decision maker to decide whether they will pay her any housing element. I really do hope that the advice she was given by her local CAB is correct. Do let us know the outcome.
    I would appreciate it if members wouldn't tag me please. I have all notifcations turned off and wouldn't want a member thinking i'm being rude by not replying.
    If i see a question that i know the answer to i will try my best to help.
  • PIPnewbie
    PIPnewbie Community member Posts: 298 Pioneering
    @poppy123456

    Thank you so much for the advice.

    Wish the government website itself will say that. 
  • PIPnewbie
    PIPnewbie Community member Posts: 298 Pioneering
    Hart86 said:
    Just to add, if she’s asked to submit a fit note to UC she shouldn’t!! Doing so will trigger a new work capability assessment under universal credit which is wrong. They should honour her esa and if she’s asked to submit a fit note she needs to make it clear that she already has a determined ESA award and under transitional regulation 19, this has to be honoured under universal credit.
    I can’t emphasise this point enough. Good luck to her! Xx
    Wow, excellent catch there.  I will pass that along to her.

    Thank you so much guys.
  • PIPnewbie
    PIPnewbie Community member Posts: 298 Pioneering
    @poppy123456

    Sorry, one more thing, but her ESA was due a week tomorrow (30th), and then two weeks after.

    At what point does it stop?  Has her ESA already stopped now she’s applied for UC?  Or will it be when the work coach applies for the ESA to be brought over? 
  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Community member Posts: 53,333 Disability Gamechanger
    It stops as soon as you apply. Hopefully her ESA will be honoured by the time she receives her first payment but don't be surprised if it isn't.
    I would appreciate it if members wouldn't tag me please. I have all notifcations turned off and wouldn't want a member thinking i'm being rude by not replying.
    If i see a question that i know the answer to i will try my best to help.
  • PIPnewbie
    PIPnewbie Community member Posts: 298 Pioneering
    Thanks Poppy.

    So if it all goes through smoothly and her ESA is honoured in time, etc., with her payment date being 29th September, over 5 weeks away, will she get the weekly rate calculated to 5 weeks on her first payment?

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