Will dismissal affect my ESA?

missmeringue

I have been absent from work for over a year and recieve contribution based ESA. After assessments by Occupational Health I am having my contract terminated through ill health. I will receive 7 weeks pay in lieu of notice and 2 weeks pay in lieu of annual leave that I had accrued. I had asked the DWP if that will affect my ESA payment but the chap I spoke to just said to send the letter in. I dont receive any income related benefits such as housing benefit but my ESA is reduced by £5 per week because of my occupational pension.

I just wondered if anyone knew how this would affect my ESA as i'm trying to keep to a strict budget with things being very tight just now and dont want any reductions coming out the blue. I'm already struggling as my husband passed away recently.

Many thanks.

Cher_Alumni

Hi @missmeringue and a big welcome to the community.  I am glad you found us and hope we can help you!! 

I can't really help with your ESA as I'm not benefits trained however I'm sure one of our other more knowledgeable members will be along soon.  

I am sorry to hear about your husband passing away  How are you coping?  

missmeringue

Hi and thank you for the welcome. 

Not coping great tbh. Cant get my head round how someone goes to work and doesn't come back. Things are difficult at the moment as the courts in my area already had a four month backlog dealing with estates before corona virus. Now it is even worse so still got all that to deal with. That's why I thought I'd try and anticipate how this would affect my ESA. 

poppy123456

HI and welcome,

You will need to report the money received from your employer to DWP. I believe that pay for annual leave will be classed as earnings and if it's more than the permitted work amount (£140 per week) then it will reduce your ESA to zero for those weeks.

Your pay in lieu of notice will not affect your ESA. See link and scroll to 4049 https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/881138/admv4.pdf

Cher_Alumni

Aw that sounds really hard to comprehend, losing someone so suddenly.  If it would help you to talk to a trained bereavement counsellor maybe give the Cruse Bereavement charity a ring on 0808 808 1677.  

Also, have you looked into whether you are eligible for the Bereavement Support Payment from the government? There's a link here with more information > https://www.gov.uk/bereavement-support-payment

missmeringue

Hi thank you both for your quick advice.

@Chloe_Scope I will apply for that and see what happens. I had never heard of it before. Many thanks for the link.

@poppy123456 Thank you so much for such an informative reply. It makes sense that you shouldn't receive a sickness benefit and holiday pay at the same time. The figure is above £140 before tax but under it after. So I will budget for it being reduced for those two weeks and anything else will be a bonus. I will send them the letter and my payslip at the end of the month so they know exactly what I have received.

janer1967

Hi and welcome to the community glad you have joined us here.

I am so sorry for your loss and it must be really hard to deal with this and I can certainly empathise losing my dad in a similar way

If you need any more advice or just a chat then just ask