Skipping UC

johnbjohn

Hi , I am currently claiming universal credit, and get nothing from it, I am getting esa, I feel that because I am getting nothing from universal credit would it be ok if I only went for esa. Would it be ok if I skipped universal credit an sent my fit notes for esa instead.
Thanks John

Adrian_Scope

Hi @johnbjohn. Can I ask if you're on the Support Group or WRAG of ESA and do you have the corresponding LCWRA/LCW on your Universal Credit claim?

BenefitsTrainingCo

johnbjohn,
Because you say that you are handing in fit notes, I assume you haven't yet had a work capability assessment and so you won't know if you are in the support group (limited capability for work-related activity in UC) or the work-related activity group (limited capability for work in UC) yet  - that will depend on the outcome of your assessment.

I think it is worth hanging on with UC for now. You're probably getting what is a penny award which can be paid to people who will only qualify for UC if they are in the support group.  If you are found to have limited capability for work-related activity (this is called the support group in ESA), then you should start to see extra money in UC paid on top of your ESA.

The other reason to hang on is that getting even a tiny bit of UC can help you with other things such as free prescriptions (if you live in England). 

So for now, I know it is annoying but I would carry on with both. If you were going to stop either of them I would stop ESA, but a reason to continue with this could be because it gives you better national insurance credits (which can help you get benefits again in the future) compared to UC.

I hope that your work coach in UC is being understanding and not making you look for work whilst you wait for the assessment.

Will