Hi, my name is Bigbenji01332_! Last year I started to claim ESA

Bigbenji01332_

Advise please,I'm claiming carers allowance and last year I started to claim ESA for myself I'm in the wrag group,I'm told I'm not entitled to any money because of occupational pension of £185 per week, and also I'm told by Dwp that my carers allowance is classed as work Also I'm on contribution based Esa..back in 2016 when I was on Esa and carer I received a carers premium with my Esa but I'm told that is for means tested Esa,I know I was definitely on contribution based Esa at the time..

poppy123456

Hi,

Your ESA is New style ESA which is all contributions based, there's no premiums paid on this. It is also only paid for 1 year unless placed into the Support Group. Also with the Carers Allowance being an overlapping benefit and your pension it would be reduced to zero anyway, even if you were in the Support Group.

When you previously claimed ESA because you received the carers premium then at least part of it was Income Related. The old contributions based ESA it was possible to receive an Income Related top up.

You can look at claiming Universal Credit but your pension and the carers allowance will be deducted in full from any UC entitlement. Whether there would be any entitlement would depend on your circumstances. You can use a benefits calculator to check entitlement. https://www.entitledto.co.uk/benefits-calculator/Intro/Home?cid=d747fbab-6546-4568-85cb-b28481774fbb

It's not always the best idea to receive any pension before you reach state pension age but too late for that now.

Ross_Alumni

Hello @Bigbenji01332_

Welcome to the community, it's nice to see you join us and I hope you enjoy taking part here, we have plenty of supportive and welcoming members so I'm sure you will.

I have moved your discussion to our ESA category, which you might find it helpful to browse for related discussions. Benefits can be quite a confusing and stressful area for many, so fingers crossed you find the stories from other members, and the interactions you have on the community, useful.

calcotti

As poppy says the Carer's Allowance and your pension mean that there is no entitlement to new style ESA even if you were put into the Support Group.
CA = £67.60. Reduction for pension of £185/week is £50/week. Total = £117.60 which is more than ESA Support Group of £114.10. Therefore no ESA payable.

If you are a single claimant with no children, with a pension of £185/week (£801.66/month) there isn't going to be any UC entitlement even if you have LCWRA (equivalent to ESA Support group).

Bigbenji01332_

Thank you for your reply,I've been receiving my occupational pension since 2000,due to industrial injury,also I didn't think CA was taken into account when claiming ESA wrag group,my sister lives with me who is special needs, so it's not like I could get a job even if I was well enough as she can't be left alone..?

poppy123456

The ESA you're claiming is New Style ESA which is a contributions based on claim and it's class as a overlapping benefit when claiming Carers Allowance at the same time. It's different to when you were previously claiming Income Related ESA.

When you were previously claiming ESA and receiving the carers premium part of the ESA must have been Income Related. Although your pension should have reduced any Income Related ESA £1 for £1, which would have included the carers premium.