It's now 12 weeks since I applied for Carer's Allowance. Who else has waited a long time?

RetroRemix

Hello again everyone,

3 days ago, it became 12 whole weeks since I sent in my application for Carer's Allowance.

Other than the initial email and letter to my family member that I care for, I've heard nothing back since.

I've tried calling to chase it up but all they can tell me is it's in the system.

How many others here waited a long time for their CA to come through? I know that some have waited 14 weeks or longer, but I want to know how many more are still waiting or did wait for a long time, and how long did you wait?

This is causing me anxiety and I can't stop thinking about it even when I'm doing other things and it would help me a lot to know I am not alone in waiting this long.

So please could you comment down below about your own waiting experience and how long you waited for?

And if you are still waiting for yours to come through, how long ago did you apply?

Thank you!

Hannah_Alumni

Hello @RetroRemix

It is my understanding that with the backlog, the process can take between 12-15 weeks. I am also wondering, if you are waiting for a response via post? With current postage strikes it's possible that it's a few days out with that situation too. 

I'm so sorry it's causing you such anxiety. Keeping my fingers crossed it comes through soon 🤞

RetroRemix

Thank you! it's just passed 13 weeks yesterday and still no reply yet. Yep it is via post  

I really don't know what should take so long, all they have to do is to check if my family member is on a qualifying benefit and that I do not have more than 16,000 in savings... which I do not and that I do not earn above a certain amount, and my proof of address and ID matches with their system, and that is it. Much less than the amount of checks they have to do for other benefit applications.

Surely these checks for CA should have been completed many thousands of times over for all the backlog of applications, let alone mine, by now? I don't understand it at all.

L_Volunteer

This sounds really difficult for you and frustrating too @RetroRemix. This is more a reflection of the difficult situation you are in rather than you as a person.

Hopefully, you will receive a response yet. In the meantime, is there anything which might make this feel more manageable for you? 

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

RetroRemix

Thank you!

I really was just hoping more would reply with their experiences of the CA application process and how long they had to wait? And if there were some that had waited or are still waiting a long time like me to also post their stories?

I know someone else on here told me they knew a lot of people who had waited a long time, someone up to 14 weeks... but I'm really wanting to read more stories so I don't feel alone in this wait.

poppy123456

RetroRemix said:

and that I do not have more than 16,000 in savings...

They do not need to check your savings because that has nothing to do with a CA claim. There's always backlogs for carers allowance. When i claimed 5 years ago it was exactly the same then. Other peoples waiting times may not be helpful anyway because it will be different depending on the area you're in.

RetroRemix

If you don't mind me asking, how long did you have to wait for your CA to come through?

I'm not really asking for other's waiting times to compare by area, it's for when my mind goes into overdrive thinking about the application I can then go back to this site, read the replies and say "Oh that person had to wait so so weeks for theirs, I've only been waiting 13 weeks for mine. I don't have to really worry just yet" and that will calm me down again. It won't stop me thinking of it until the thing comes through, but it will calm me down.

I know that sounds weird, but it's the way my mind has always worked.

And it might also help others the same way who are also waiting a long time or did have to wait a long time.

poppy123456

It was about 13 weeks but as i said that was 5 years ago. Are you claiming any other benefits such as UC? If so then are they including the carers element with your claim? Carers allowance will just be deducted in full from any UC entitlement anyway.

RetroRemix

Thank you! Do you think the wait times will be even longer now days?

Yep I'm also claiming UC and told them I am a carer that I was advised to do when I posted about this previously.

It's just that my mind won't rest thinking and worrying about CA, knowing that application is still out there and a million possibilities going through my mind wondering what exactly is happening to it. It's like this with nearly everything I send off for, even for cheap cables I buy from Ebay lol, but waiting for CA is more stressful than that.

I'm trying my best not to think bad of it, I know they are all working hard and they are not delaying it on purpose. I should know that. I just can't stop thinking about it, thinking of all sorts of reasons why it's taking this long.

poppy123456

I have no idea of the length of the backlogs i'm afraid. To be honest we don't have many questions about CA here. As you claim UC as well there's no financial gain to claiming CA at the same time anyway.

Try to think about something else while you wait.

RetroRemix

"If you're single with no rent to pay then you'll be entitled to £334.91(over 25's) single standard allowance and £168.81 carers element. The carers allowance will be deducted in full from the UC.

This will mean your UC will be £194.72/month and your Carers Allowance will be £69.70/week."

I'm sorry but I am confused, last time I posted in this forum I was told the above, that there was a gain. I don't really understand the benefit system fully, it's confusing, so sorry if I am understanding it wrong.

poppy123456

That is correct but you don't need to claim carers allowance to be entitled to the carers element of UC. I tried looking back to your other threads but can't because your profile is set to private.

RetroRemix

Oh sorry here it is, I only have 2 posts so far. But I've set it to non public now, I thought private just meant that anyone without an account here could not see it.

How long is the wait for Carer's Allowance in 2022? — Scope | Disability forum

poppy123456

Thanks. It's a public forum so anyone can see what you post. However, if you're not a member no one can click on your profile to view it, you have to be a member to do this. Some will have their profile visable and some won't.

Ok so you claimed CA before you claimed UC, that makes sense now. This means that you will be owed the full amount of CA up until you claimed UC. Once you claimed UC the CA will then be deducted from UC once the CA is in payment.

When you receive the money owed from CA you will receive the whole amount from the time you applied. You will then have an overpayment of UC from the time you applied for this. The overpayment will need to be repaid back and they will likely reduce your future UC payments.

When you receive your a few days before your UC payment have a look on your journal for your statement, on this will have all the elements you're entitled to. For you it will be standard element (over 25) and it should also have the carers element, as you should have reported being a carer.

When the carers allowance is in payment it will also show the deduction for this which will be £302/month.

Hopefully you'll hear from CA soon. Sorry for any confusion caused.

RetroRemix

Ah, ok it makes sense now, thank you so much for explaining it clear! 

It's ok, the system is one confusing spaghetti of a meal LOL but thank you for helping to clear it up!

I really hope CA replies soon.

L_Volunteer

You are welcome @RetroRemix. It is the very least you deserve.

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

forgoodnesssake

I have waited months for CA each time I re-claim (my son is at Uni so I do the decent thing and stop claiming when he's not at home but then wait months each time to get it for the weeks he has been at home.)  Has been up to 4 or 5 months...and get the same responses as you when I ring up.  I did actually post about this previously on here.  I think the CA dept is chronically understaffed.

RetroRemix

Ok, thanks so much for letting me know that the now 14 weeks (Still no reply ugh) is not an unusual amount of time to be waiting.

L_Volunteer

It sounds really frustrating @RetroRemix but I am glad to hear we managed to reassure you that it is not an unusual amount of time to be waiting.

Hopefully, you will hear soon. In the meantime, is there anything that might help this to feel more manageable for you?

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

RetroRemix

Thank you! I had an update last week, they say that an old claim I have on file is blocking the new application from coming through. 

This old claim was for my father who I also cared for before he passed away in June. Back then I used the DWP "tell us once" service to inform all the departments and governments of his passing, but the person on the DWP phone told me that their department still didn't have all the details of where he died and how long he was in hospital for.

So he asked me a few questions, and he said he put all the details onto an email which he sent to someone for them to add those details to the file. He told me to wait a couple of weeks to see what would happen and if there was still no progress to give them a ring back.

In the meantime when I ring up to enquire and they ask me who I care for I have to tell them my dad's name, even though that claim has ended and that in the meantime they may call me to ask for more details, but that it would eventually sort itself out.

I don't know what to do if the email he sent off doesn't sort it out, but I really hope it does.

Because the Carer's Allowance and his pension and AA all stopped being paid very shortly after I used the "tell us once" service (because we even got a letter saying sorry for his passing from the different departments and that we owed the Pension Service money, which we paid off)... so, all the departments know about it already, so I really don't know why there still should be a hold up after all these months or missing details anywhere.

RetroRemix

I have another update:

Today someone from the DWP Carer's Allowance unit phoned and wanted to know the exact dates for sure that my Dad went into and came out of hospital before he passed away. Thankfully he had kept all his discharge and hospital letters so it was easy to have the information at hand. They said that closing the claim will take a little while and the new application will then go through.

So I hope this is good news from now on.

I will also say that if your own application is taking a long time, and you hear nothing back then please do phone up the unit and ask as this was the only way that I found out that this claim had not been fully closed in all this time. Despite Carer's Allowance payments ending back in June, it still didn't mean that the claim was fully closed.

I had thought that the DWP "tell us once" service would have contacted the hospital themselves to tell the unit all those details way back in June, but the person on the phone told me that information is actually up to the Carer to provide themselves, even if you use this service.

So please do phone the unit up to ask, if you have any doubts or questions, instead of just waiting for a very long time to see what will happen. It really might be the only way you will know if you have anything holding back your application!