Benefits and Savings

LittleKitten

I'm hopefully going to be claiming PIP, "New Style" ESA and Universal Credit, but I'm unlikely to spend all of it at the same rate i recieve it, so I'm wondering what my best option(s) would be to make the most use of this money so that I can access it in the future if I need it to pay bills or sonething.

Tori_Scope

Welcome to the community @LittleKitten! It looks like you've accidentally posted the same thing twice, so I'm going to delete your other post to avoid confusion.

Do you currently have a bank account? 

poppy123456

HI,

Savings/capital do not affect PIP or New style ESA. Savings/capital of more than £6,000 affects your UC and will reduce it by £4.35 per month for every £250 (or part there of) over that amount. Savings/capital of £16,000 and over means you're not entitled to any means tested benefits.

If you're claiming council tax reduction then you'll need to check with them what there savings threshold is because all local councils have their own criteria.

LittleKitten

So, yes I do have a bank account, but I was more wondering if There's a way to stop my savings from affecting the Universal credit when they're £6,000 - £16,000 +

Tori_Scope

Oh haha, I totally misunderstood that @LittleKitten Hopefully Poppy's advice above was helpful? 

LittleKitten

Well, I'm in the procress of claiming PIP and ESA, but I'm not too sure about the ESA, in terms of whether I'll get it or not.

poppy123456

There's no financial gain to claiming both New style ESA and UC at the same time because the New style ESA is deducted £1 for £1 from any UC entitlement. The only difference between them id that ESA pays class ! NI credits and UC pays class 2 and of course 1 means tested and the other isn't.

To claim the NSESA you will have needed to have worked and paid the correct amount of NI contributions in tax years April 2017 to April 2019.

If your savings go above £6,000 there's no way of stopping it affecting your UC entitlement and you need to reporrt the changes, which will see a reduction in your UC entitlement depending on how much you have.

Are you sending in fit notes for your UC claim?

woodbine

@LittleKitten there is no way of hiding your savings from the DWP if you tried that would be fraud and have consequences, you can of course spend you benefits income to keep it below £6000 most people would regard having that to fall back on as a luxury.

LittleKitten

Well, at the moment, I'm in college full time, but am sending fit notes for the ESA claim, and will reclaim UC when I get the WCA back, since, as far as I know, I need to be getting PIP and have LCWA  or LCWRA to get UC while in college full time.

poppy123456

LittleKitten said:

Well, at the moment, I'm in college full time, but am sending fit notes for the ESA claim, and will reclaim UC when I get the WCA back, since, as far as I know, I need to be getting PIP and have LCWA  or LCWRA to get UC while in college full time.

That's correct. If you haven't paid the correct amount of NI contributions then your ESA claim will be credits only and you won't receive any payments. Also if you're receiving a student loan or there's one available to you and you choose not to take it then this can affect any UC you maybe entitled to in the future.

If you don't already have a PIP award then you won't be able to claim ESA for NI credits only either because you're a student.

Have you started a claim for PIP?

LittleKitten

I've started the claim for PIP, I'm just filling out the form at the moment. And if it's a credit only clain, but one which gives me WCA assessment, would that then entitle me to UC? And would a credits only claim become a full claim after a period of time at all?

poppy123456

If you haven't paid the correct amnount of NI contributions for the New style ESA claim then it can never become a payments claim, it will always be justa credits only claim. It will give you the work capability assessment but even if you're given LCW or LCWRA then you still can't claim UC unless you have a PIP award.

You need to conitnue with your PIP claim first to be honest but that can take a while to get a decision. Some claims can take several months.

What about students loans? Are you claiming any? if not is there any available to you?

LittleKitten

I'm not claiming any student loans, and there's none available to me so far as I know.

poppy123456

Lots of students claim a student loan so you'll need to check there's none available to you. It will depend on what your course is though. This link will help with that. https://www.gov.uk/student-finance/who-qualifies

poppy123456

Here's link regarding students and UC. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/universal-credit-and-students

LittleKitten

It's a level 3 course though, and I have no other qualifications Level 3 or higher already.

poppy123456

I can only assume that it's non advanced education you're in, rather than higher education?

If you're living with parents may i ask if they are claiming child benefit for you? If they are then starting a claim for a benefit in your own right like New style ESA will stop any benefits they maybe claiming for you.

Sorry but diffficult to advise without knowing all of your details.

LittleKitten

I'm pretty certian they are not getting child benefit for me, since I ewould assume UC affects it in the same way, and I was claiming that until I started the course. Which I think also gives me NI credits which I think count towards being able to get ESA, from what I can understand.

LittleKitten

And yes, a Level 3 course is equivilant to A Levels in the UK. Which is not a higher education level course.

poppy123456

UC pays class 3 NI credits only, for your state pension which unfortunately, do not count towards a claim for New style ESA. The NI contributions need to be from working in the previous 2 tax years.

poppy123456

https://www.gov.uk/national-insurance-credits

LittleKitten

If I was to try claiming the old income related ESA, would that give me Class 1 NI credits and would that then affect "new style" ESA?

poppy123456

You can't claim the old income related ESA because it no longer exists for you because UC has replaced it.

Claiming benefits alone do not give entitlement to New style ESA because you need to have worked and paid NI contributions. You can only claim New style ESA as a credits only claim.

LittleKitten

But I can make a new claim for ESA when the first ends and the credits gotten from the credits only ESA claim should count towards the NI contributions for having the 2/3 years needed, right?

poppy123456

No, you can't because the NI credits alone from the New style ESA is not enough to claim the NS/ESA and receive payments. You need to have also worked and paid the correct amount of NI contributions. Fully explained here. https://www.entitledto.co.uk/help/employment-and-support-allowance-contribution-based

Once you're claim for NS/ESA is in credits only and you're assessed, if you're placed into one of the groups and you have successfully claimed PIP then you can claim UC and this is the only way around it.

LittleKitten

This is what it says for last year's NI contributions, I don't have any for the two years before that, though.

"You have contributions from

Paid employment: £3.31

National Insurance credits: 53 weeks

These may have been added to your record if you were ill/disabled, unemployed, caring for someone full-time or on jury service."

poppy123456

You were claiming Universal Credit and this pays class 3 NI credits. You don't have the correct NI contributions to be able to claim anything else but a credits only NS/ESA claim. You will not receive any payments.

LittleKitten

But I only started claiming UC about 6 or so months ago, and when I was working for a few months, it didn't pay much as it was minimum wage for under 18s at the time (£4.35ph) full time, which comes to a maximum of £174 per week, which meant I didn't have direct NI contributions from that, if I recall correctly.

poppy123456

You haven't paid enough to receive the payments from the NS/ESA claim. Please read the link i posted above and it explains the NI contributions that's needed.

I think i've exhausted all the advice i can give you here because i'm just repeating myself but i wish you good luck with the work capability assesment and your PIP claim.