Declaring lump sums to ESA

sheepy

Hello all I really need some advice

i am registered with the DWP and job centre plus as my husband’s appointee and we have recently started to receive the new style ESA at the starter rate of £77

The capability for work questionnaire has also just popped through the post so it’s all a bit overwhelming 

I am aware that I have to declare any changes but understand that the new style ESA is slightly different so some help please

my husband is still technically employed and his employers are very reasonable people they recently contacted me and said he had a large amount of holiday outstanding as he has been off sick for over a year they are willing to pay this as a lump sum
so my first question is:- 
do I need to declare this lump sum to the ESA and will it affect the payments he is receiving 

His union have also made contact recently and told me that as an enhanced member his is entitled to sickness benefits for a year which can be back dated to when his was first off sick and paid as a lump sum
so my second question is:-
do I need to declare this lump sum to the ESA and will it affect the payments he is receiving 

The citizenship advice website is unclear and anyone I have spoken to say if in doubt tell the ESA/Job centre plus just in case !! 

I don’t want to get in trouble or hinder the advancement of his capability for work questionnaire but I also don’t want to create a situation where a further re-assessment takes place if it’s not necessary

so do I need to declare these payments

I would really appreciate a comprehensive reply as it’s all very confusing  

many thanks in advance

sheepy

If you could let me have your thoughts I would be very grateful my husband had a stroke and has also developed extreme anxiety and depression in does make life difficult dealing with everything 
I could really do with some advice

calcotti

The holiday pay doesn’t matter.

I am not immediately sure about the union benefit and I haven’t time to look up the guidance yet. Pension income on health insurance payments for which the claimant did not pay premiums will reduce ESA payable by 50% of the amount over £85/week. Even if paid as a backdated lump sum, based on what you have posted, would expect DWP to treat it as a weekly entitlement. If the policy has effectively been paid for through the union duties then it would hopefully fall to be ignored. If you in doubt you could inform ESA but you will need to provide comprehensive information about the policy in order for DWP to be able to work out how to treat it.

Was he paying extra money for the health benefit?

None of this will affect the WCA.

sheepy

The payments from the union amount to £25 a week which they will can back date up to 52 weeks and pay as a lump sum
this is sick pay benefits and is not in any way pension related if this helps at all ?

calcotti

sheepy said:

The payments from the union amount to £25 a week which they will can back date up to 52 weeks and pay as a lump sum
this is sick pay benefits and is not in any way pension related if this helps at all ?

Health benefits can be related in the same way as pension income

Without knowing exactly what the union dues provide for it isn't possible to say whether this matters (and i wouldn't be able to advise on that anyway). My instinct is that they aren't going to matter but i could be wrong.

sheepy

I was told he was an enhanced member of the union
his membership is £16.25 a month which I think includes these extra benefits if you are off sick
not even sure if he knew about it he has just kept paying the subs

sheepy

I’ve just contacted the union but to be honest I’m not sure that they understood what I was talking about
they said they would get back to me ?

L_Volunteer

Hopefully, they will get back to you @sheepy. Unfortunately, this is not an area of my expertise.

Hopefully, someone else will be able to help if you need any further support! We'll all listen to you at the very least.

You don't have to face this, or anything else, alone if you don't want to 

sheepy

I suppose I want a definitive answer and maybe that’s not possible at the end of the day I think the Union lump sum back dated could be as much as £800 which is a huge amount of money to us
however if the big picture means it could affect any claims I’ve made I suppose it would be a bad idea
i feel I now have to make all the decisions that my husband would have done
his stroke has made his thought process quite slow and sometimes erratic which is very frustrating for him but of course his anxiety and depression makes things so much worse
This although difficult I can accept but financial decisions are a worry which is why I was hoping someone here could help
As I said originally Citizens Advice said to contact ESA and see what they say but I think that might be a mistake and open a can of worms
if you have any thoughts please let me know

L_Volunteer

@sheepy How have things been for you more recently? I appreciate that it has been a little while since you last posted on this thread now.

I want to make sure you have access to the support you need and deserve but I am also aware that things might have changed since.

Please don't hesitate to let us know if we can do anything to help. We are all here for you