Is receiving Guaranteed Pension Credit truly identifying those with the greatest need?

racyguy

Moving on, and away from my previous post I note that being on a means tested benefit (Guaranteed Pension Credit will mean more financial support is to awarded. This leads me to wonder if some pensioners receiving that benefit are really that poor.

I had a look at what a pensioner on the old SRP would be entitled to in terms of current income. 
A couple would be receiving a total SRP of £226.85 a week. The limit for GPC is £278.70 thus an amount of £51.85 Pension Credit would be in payment (this is the same amount that I was on).
If however if one of the couple was to be awarded Attendance Allowance at any rate and the other person claims that they care for them their GPC limit would go up to £386.95 a week giving them a GPC award of £160.10 + the Attendance Allowance award.
If both of them each had any Attendance Allowance award then the revised limit would be £495.20. Thus their total GPC award would then be £268.35 a week + the Attendance Allowances
In the latter case they would be receiving the equivalent of something like a £36,000 a year gross salary and yet would be classed as being on a low income.  Umm seems that the government should be tapering the financial packages to suit only those that are on a low income despite them receiving Pension Credit. Doing that, the savings could be given to the truly desperate.

poppy123456

racyguy said:

If however if one of the couple was to be awarded Attendance Allowance at any rate and the other person claims that they care for them their GPC limit would go up to £386.95 a week giving them a GPC award of £160.10 + the Attendance Allowance award.

That doesn't sound correct to me. Someone that cares for a person claiming a qualifying disability benefit would see their PC increase by £38.85 per week because of the carers premium being added. Carers allowance and State Pension are overlapping benefits so if their state pension is more than £69.70 per week, they can't be paid Carers allowance.

Not sure the need for a new thread on a very similar subject though. It seems like we continue to go round in circles here.

racyguy

poppy123456 said:

racyguy said:

If however if one of the couple was to be awarded Attendance Allowance at any rate and the other person claims that they care for them their GPC limit would go up to £386.95 a week giving them a GPC award of £160.10 + the Attendance Allowance award.

That doesn't sound correct to me. Someone that cares for a person claiming a qualifying disability benefit would see their PC increase by £38.85 per week because of the carers premium being added. Carers allowance and State Pension are overlapping benefits so if their state pension is more than £69.70 per week, they can't be paid Carers allowance.

Not sure the need for a new thread on a very similar subject though. It seems like we continue to go round in circles here.

You are missing the additional amount for one of the couple receiving Attendance Allowance.
This premium of £69.40 is added to the Carers Premium of £38.85. This totals £108.25 on top of the minimum income level of 278.70 giving £386.95. Effectively giving another £69.40 on top of the Attendance Allowance.
It's not the same subject at all. I am just putting it out there to show that the government is using Pension Credit as a gateway to this extra money even though no one is actually looking at some GPC claimants are actually rather well off.

woodbine

@racyguy it would probably cost more than its worth to means test all the new help announced today, some of it will be universal some dependant on what benefits a person gets, personally I think they have put together a fair and effective package to try their level best to help people in the current situation.
They also announced (and some may have missed it) that in Sept. the C.P.I will be used for next Aprils pensions and benefits updating, and inflation by Sept. could be 12%, giving the largest update in more than a generation.

But I agree with Poppy we seem to be going round in circles.

poppy123456

racyguy said:

poppy123456 said:

racyguy said:

If however if one of the couple was to be awarded Attendance Allowance at any rate and the other person claims that they care for them their GPC limit would go up to £386.95 a week giving them a GPC award of £160.10 + the Attendance Allowance award.

That doesn't sound correct to me. Someone that cares for a person claiming a qualifying disability benefit would see their PC increase by £38.85 per week because of the carers premium being added. Carers allowance and State Pension are overlapping benefits so if their state pension is more than £69.70 per week, they can't be paid Carers allowance.

Not sure the need for a new thread on a very similar subject though. It seems like we continue to go round in circles here.

You are missing the additional amount for one of the couple receiving Attendance Allowance.
This premium of £69.40 is added to the Carers Premium of £38.85. This totals £108.25 on top of the minimum income level of 278.70

No, that's not correct. The Severe disability premium of £69.40 isn't paid if only one of the couples is claiming a qualifying disability benefit, unless the other one is registered blind. For the SDP criteria you must be living alone or "classed as lving alone" unless all the adults either claim a qualifying disability benefit or they are reqgistered blind.

See link. https://www.entitledto.co.uk/help/severe-disability-premium

If only 1 of them is claiming a disability benefit then the carers premium only is added to the PC.

leeCal

They also announced (and some may have missed it) that in Sept. the C.P.I will be used for next Aprils pensions and benefits updating,

@woodbine Was that something which was just said or was it written somewhere please?

calcotti

leeCal said:

They also announced (and some may have missed it) that in Sept. the C.P.I will be used for next Aprils pensions and benefits updating,

@woodbine Was that something which was just said or was it written somewhere please?

I can’t see it in the official announcements but was said in the House.
https://hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2022-05-26/debates/00D0B309-467C-44F6-BC45-74E1EBA205B4/EconomyUpdate

I can reassure the House that next year, subject to the review by the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, benefits will be uprated by this September’s consumer prices index, which on the current forecast is likely to be significantly higher than the forecast inflation rate for next year. Similarly, the triple lock will apply to the state pension.

Note that this is not a definite commitment, being “subject to the review by the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions”.

leeCal

Thank you @calcotti

racyguy

poppy123456 said:

racyguy said:

poppy123456 said:

racyguy said:

If however if one of the couple was to be awarded Attendance Allowance at any rate and the other person claims that they care for them their GPC limit would go up to £386.95 a week giving them a GPC award of £160.10 + the Attendance Allowance award.

That doesn't sound correct to me. Someone that cares for a person claiming a qualifying disability benefit would see their PC increase by £38.85 per week because of the carers premium being added. Carers allowance and State Pension are overlapping benefits so if their state pension is more than £69.70 per week, they can't be paid Carers allowance.

Not sure the need for a new thread on a very similar subject though. It seems like we continue to go round in circles here.

You are missing the additional amount for one of the couple receiving Attendance Allowance.
This premium of £69.40 is added to the Carers Premium of £38.85. This totals £108.25 on top of the minimum income level of 278.70

No, that's not correct. The Severe disability premium of £69.40 isn't paid if only one of the couples is claiming a qualifying disability benefit, unless the other one is registered blind. For the SDP criteria you must be living alone or "classed as lving alone" unless all the adults either claim a qualifying disability benefit or they are reqgistered blind.

See link. https://www.entitledto.co.uk/help/severe-disability-premium

If only 1 of them is claiming a disability benefit then the carers premium only is added to the PC.

Thanks, I stand corrected.
That being the case I do feel that more pressure should be put on the government to ensure not only GPC is claimed but just as important make sure that Attendance Allowance  is claimed.
AA is accepted as being the easiest disability benefit to be awarded unlike PIP.

racyguy

Sorry I should have added.

My late widowed father was awarded AA at 73. He was well able to look after himself having just lost his wife. He shopped independently and had days out on the bus. He didn't even complete a claim form. He wrote a letter to the DWP telling them how much easier it would be for him if he had help.

MarkM88

racyguy said:

Thanks, I stand corrected.
That being the case I do feel that more pressure should be put on the government to ensure not only GPC is claimed but just as important make sure that Attendance Allowance  is claimed.
AA is accepted as being the easiest disability benefit to be awarded unlike PIP.

DWP administer benefits, there not there to advise regarding potential entitlement. 

ShirleyW

racyguy said:

Sorry I should have added.

My late widowed father was awarded AA at 73. He was well able to look after himself having just lost his wife. He shopped independently and had days out on the bus. He didn't even complete a claim form. He wrote a letter to the DWP telling them how much easier it would be for him if he had help.

That was certainly not my recent experience of claiming and receiving Attendance Allowance.   It was relatively easy when compared to claiming PIP but I do not believe that they would have accepted a letter such as the one your father sent them.

I had to complete a long form of approximately 30 plus pages with approximately 50 plus questions on it.

The questions are varied and require some quite in depth answering regarding personal care and help needed.  The form took me several days to complete.  I am a very organised person with regards to paperwork and I was well versed in completing Gov forms, having worked in accountancy nearly all my working life.

How many years ago was it when your father asked for Attendance Allowance?

racyguy

ShirleyW said:

racyguy said:

Sorry I should have added.

My late widowed father was awarded AA at 73. He was well able to look after himself having just lost his wife. He shopped independently and had days out on the bus. He didn't even complete a claim form. He wrote a letter to the DWP telling them how much easier it would be for him if he had help.

That was certainly not my recent experience of claiming and receiving Attendance Allowance.   It was relatively easy when compared to claiming PIP but I do not believe that they would have accepted a letter such as the one your father sent them.

I had to complete a long form of approximately 30 plus pages with approximately 50 plus questions on it.

The questions are varied and require some quite in depth answering regarding personal care and help needed.  The form took me several days to complete.  I am a very organised person with regards to paperwork and I was well versed in completing Gov forms, having worked in accountancy nearly all my working life.

How many years ago was it when your father asked for Attendance Allowance?

2003, following the death of my mum. Surprisingly that is what he did. I actually got hold of the AA claim form for him but he chose to write a long letter in answering the questions from the form.
If my memory serves me correctly he was awarded the lower of the two categories. What I do know that the weekly award paid for two hours of cleaning his home a week, paying the gardener a couple of times a month as well as the window cleaner once a month. He still had enough left over to buy his regular weekly packet of pipe tobacco. 

ShirleyW

@racyguy I think your Father was very lucky.  It certainly wouldn't happen like that today 19 years later.

I remember my Mother helping  my Stepfather's father to claim Attendance Allowance. This would be in the late 1990's and he didn't find it that easy to get.  He actually had a home visit to assess him.  He was in his eighties and was eventually awarded Attendance Allowance after my Mother submitted an appeal on his behalf. 

poppy123456

racyguy said:

poppy123456 said:

racyguy said:

poppy123456 said:

racyguy said:

If however if one of the couple was to be awarded Attendance Allowance at any rate and the other person claims that they care for them their GPC limit would go up to £386.95 a week giving them a GPC award of £160.10 + the Attendance Allowance award.

That doesn't sound correct to me. Someone that cares for a person claiming a qualifying disability benefit would see their PC increase by £38.85 per week because of the carers premium being added. Carers allowance and State Pension are overlapping benefits so if their state pension is more than £69.70 per week, they can't be paid Carers allowance.

Not sure the need for a new thread on a very similar subject though. It seems like we continue to go round in circles here.

You are missing the additional amount for one of the couple receiving Attendance Allowance.
This premium of £69.40 is added to the Carers Premium of £38.85. This totals £108.25 on top of the minimum income level of 278.70

No, that's not correct. The Severe disability premium of £69.40 isn't paid if only one of the couples is claiming a qualifying disability benefit, unless the other one is registered blind. For the SDP criteria you must be living alone or "classed as lving alone" unless all the adults either claim a qualifying disability benefit or they are reqgistered blind.

See link. https://www.entitledto.co.uk/help/severe-disability-premium

If only 1 of them is claiming a disability benefit then the carers premium only is added to the PC.

That being the case I do feel that more pressure should be put on the government to ensure not only GPC is claimed but just as important make sure that Attendance Allowance  is claimed.

How on earth would it be possible for the Government to know who's entitled to these? Sorry but this is ridiculous to expect this to happen.

woodbine

leeCal said:

They also announced (and some may have missed it) that in Sept. the C.P.I will be used for next Aprils pensions and benefits updating,

@woodbine Was that something which was just said or was it written somewhere please?

I haven't seen it written tbh but the chancellor definitely announced it, just had a look and can't find it but I did watch his statement twice yesterday so it might be on iplayer.
But thinking about it they did scrap the "triple lock" this year for obvious reasons, and they did increase benefits by 3.1% which was Sept.2021 inflation rate.
HTH.

leeCal

Thanks @woodbine , calcotti linked to the transcript of what Mr Sunak said and it’s written there. 
As you say it will depend on funds this autumn I think, though inflation is nibbling away at our differentials at quite a rate. We will be due a substantial uprate by September.