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Would claiming help with rent make them change me TO UC?

Emilyb81

Hi I am currently on old style ESA have been for years... I live in private rented static caravan as I made myself intentionally homeless 1.5 yrs ago due to escaping violence I left with nothing apart from a carrier bag of clothes! Anyway I am paying full rent here she doesn't take housing benefit and I had to promise when I signed tenancy for this place I'd never make her wait for the rent that's all she needs to know as she don't normally take people on benefits full stop but I'd told her my situation and I had nowhere near enough to pay a deposit for a flat etc she took a small deposit/advance rent so she said as long as I keep paying her weekly I can move straight in! And I'm grateful but paying the rent weekly is wiping a lot of my ESA out and I found out recently I can apply for housing benefit and get it paid to me and I'd just use it to pay her? So I wanted to start claiming asap but then found out I can't apply for Hb anymore because it doesn't exist and I can apply for help from UC ? What I'm wondering is if I ask UC for help with my rent would that mean I'd have to then stop claiming ESA and make a new claim for UC? Or can I keep claiming old ESA and ask for UC help towards housing? I mean can I claim both at same time? I don't want to trigger a change over to UC because I'd lose even more money as I don't believe I get the top up money if I change over myself I need to of been migrated over by DWP?

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janer1967

Hi there and welcome to the community

I can't answer all your questions but to get uc housing element you will need to supply a tenancy agreement and they will check this out for verification from your landlady so she will be aware you are claiming housing

calcotti

To get help with rent you will need to claim UC. A claim for UC will end any entitlement to income based ESA. If some of your ESA is contribution based that will continue but will reduce the UC you receive.

I don't know what you mean by 'top up' money. If you are getting the Severe Disability Premium you will get a SDP transitional element in UC. If you are in the ESA Support Group you should get the LCWRA element in UC.

Given that you currently get no help with rent i would expect you to get more money on UC than you currently get.

There are benefit calculators here
https://www.gov.uk/benefits-calculators

calcotti

janer1967 said:.. they will check this out for verification from your landlady ..

I don't think that is true for private landlords/landladies. That's the point of supplying the tenancy agreement. Social housing landlords are informed but social tenants don't, as I understand it, have to provide their tenancy agreement.

janer1967

@calcotti OK only going on my own experience

But mine is housing association rental, and I know they checked mine as I had put a different road in on the online form by mistake and came up different to what housing association verified so I had to change it all

Emilyb81

No it's residential site ? adults only etc? And I have tenancy but if I'd have to stop ESA it would mean I'm no better off in fact I'd be worse off even if they did agree to pay full rent for me? So not an option at this point then! Oh well just glad I didn't apply before checking!
I was told by someone they don't contact the landlords as long as u have a tenancy to show them? If I explain they don't accept Hb tell council I don't want her to be told?
Surely there must be a way to claim without informing the landlord? Not that it matters now but I'd be interested for future reference if anyone knows? As for me now I will have to be better at budgeting ?? my worst skill or most non existent! Lol thanks for replies everyone! ?

calcotti

janer1967 said:

@calcotti OK only going on my own experience

But mine is housing association rental, and I know they checked mine as I had put a different road in on the online form by mistake and came up different to what housing association verified so I had to change it all

calcotti said: I don't think that is true for private landlords/landladies. ..Social housing landlords are informed but social tenants don't, as I understand it, have to provide their tenancy agreement.

As I said, social housing landlords are informed - a housing association is a social housing landlord.

Emilyb81

Ok no worries hadn't had notification about further comments sorry! So may be ok if it's private not housing association ??

Emilyb81

Ok no worries hadn't had notification about further comments sorry! So may be ok if it's private not housing association ??

calcotti

Emilyb81 said:

.. if I'd have to stop ESA it would mean I'm no better off in fact I'd be worse off even if they did agree to pay full rent for me? ..

Why do you think that? have you used a calculator to check this. I cannot envisage a situation in which UC which includes housing costs will give you less money than you get with ESA and no Housing Benefit.

Emilyb81 said:..If I explain they don't accept Hb tell council I don't want her to be told?

The council has nothing to do with UC, it is DWP. As advised I don't think DWP will contact your landlady as you are renting privately.

Emilyb81

Basically I was told (this might be the problem maybe I'm listening to the wrong person!) That if I change over to UC I would no longer get disability premiums? If UC is caused by me changing circumstances then I lose the extra money but if I wait until I'm forced across I get top up money so I get same amount I'm getting currently?

Emilyb81

I have also just got a £500 council tax bill I have to pay for last year I've never paid council tax before as I always claimed benefit and was covered? But now I'm not so moving forward I have no idea what help I can get with that either! I have only just got pip back a week ago so I think maybe I need to be in receipt of that to get council tax reduction? Or again I could and probably am wrong! ?

Emilyb81

I did contact them about this before and they said I couldn't get any help I had to agree to pay £10 a week and I was then not getting premium or pip so after rent I had £30 a fortnight! So no way to pay them £40 a month! So they took me to court anyway and now it's even more money so I need to try and get in control of my situation before I am stung again! I am just so useless at paying bills etc! Always have been! Buy I don't want to make it all worse! Make wrong decisions! ☹️

calcotti

You are correct that you do not get disability premiums in UC because UC is structured differently. However the LCWRA element of UC is worth more than the Support component and enhanced disability premium in ESA. If you get the SDP in your ESA you would get the SDP transitional element in your initial UC award. Although this is less than the SDP and will erode over time the 'loss' is likely to be considerably less than the extra you would get in the housing element.

I think you are jumping to conclusions. Try the calculators I linked to earlier.

Emilyb81

Oh ok honestly all ever heard was don't go on UC you lose money if you go on UC don't change to UC and non stop negatives about it? So to be fair its scared me! A LOT!
I will look for the calculator post and have more of an open mind! Thankyou ?

Emilyb81

Is housing element just towards rent or other things too? Sorry I am asking too many questions I know! Just never even considered changing to UC until tonight! Obviously if it would leave me either the same or better off/less stressed then definitely worth it! ?? Thanks all!

calcotti

Emilyb81 said: I will look for the calculator post and have more of an open mind! Thankyou ?

calcotti said:
There are benefit calculators here
https://www.gov.uk/benefits-calculators

Note that the amount of UC is set to reduce by £86.67/month in October so take this into account when comparing the results.

calcotti

Do you get DLA or PIP and does your ESA include the Severe Disability Premium?

Emilyb81

Yeah I took off that £20 uplift as no point counting it really!
I get pip and sdp yes and I am band a I believe tax wise! So I think it is saying after the uplift goes I am going to get slightly less income however I am thinking that doesn't include them paying some or all of my £85 a week rent? So I would be better off if I'm working it out right! ? It says on ESA I should get 367 a week and on UC £445 but obviously I have to take the uplift away....

calcotti

I don't see how those figures come out.

If you are single I would expect your existing ESA to be standard allowance £74.70, Support Group £39.40, Enhanced Disability Premium £17.20 and SDP £67.30 = £198.60/week.

On UC you would get single allowance £411.51, LCWRA element £343.63 and SDP element £120 = £875.14/month which is equivalent to £201.95/week. Deduct £20 = £181.95/week.

This is a loss of £16.65/week but you then add on the rent and you would be getting more on UC than ESA.

The help with rent will be limited to your actual rent or the one bedroom LHA rate for your post code (whichever is lower). See
https://lha-direct.voa.gov.uk/Search.aspx

You may wish to get advice from a local advice agency to check the calculations are correct for your situation.

Emilyb81

Yeah this one added pip on I believe ? so it's the same so if I did get the help with rent I'd be better off ? thanks!I will double check it with citizens advice tomorrow or whenever I can get an appointment with them! ???
Thankyou ☀️