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Legacy benefit to UC help

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ukstevo7
ukstevo7 Community member Posts: 3 Listener
in Disability rights and campaigning
I have read today that the protection from been moved to UC from legacy is removed.  I get the severe disability payment.  
I know a change in circumstance can move you over.  I am in a housing association home, but the rent goes up each year a £1 or 2 a week.  That’s the only change i have.  Is that going to move me as it’s done each year?  

And how much would it change my money pm?  

Thank you Steven 
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  • calcotti
    calcotti Community member Posts: 10,010 Disability Gamechanger
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    No. A change in the rent payable is not a relevant change that would require a claim for UC.
    Information I post is for England unless otherwise stated. Rules may be different in other parts of UK.
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  • ukstevo7
    ukstevo7 Community member Posts: 3 Listener
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    calcotti said:
    No. A change in the rent payable is not a relevant change that would require a claim for UC.
    Thank you for the reply, as you can tell this has me worried.  
    I don’t need to change anything apart from the yearly rent increase that happens with inflation with housing association, it’s half owned by me but the rest is rent.  

    Just reading today that half a million of us could be pushed onto it makes you worry as they don’t have anything that  acknowledges Disabled people

    So The rent increase that housing benefits pay will not be a change that will move me over   ?


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  • calcotti
    calcotti Community member Posts: 10,010 Disability Gamechanger
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    ukstevo7 said: So The rent increase that housing benefits pay will not be a change that will move me over   ?
    As per my previous response, no it will not.

    What ‘triggers’ a need to claim UC is if an existing benefit ends and you then need to claim new help which is only available through UC. The rules for existing benefits have (for the most part) not changed. You have no doubt had years on your existing benefits during which your rent has increased annually. That will continue until such time as ‘managed migration’ takes place (sometime from 2022 to late 2026 under current predictions).
    ukstevo7 said: Just reading today that half a million of us could be pushed onto it makes you worry as they don’t have anything that  acknowledges Disabled people
    UC does include transitional protection for claimants under managed migration and transitional protection for those who have a SDP even if they ‘naturally’ migrate.
    Information I post is for England unless otherwise stated. Rules may be different in other parts of UK.
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  • woodbine
    woodbine Community member Posts: 11,618 Disability Gamechanger
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    Its true that the migration to UC has now started for those on legacy and the target for completion is 2024, we have seen all sorts of targets set by the DWP come and go, there are still 200,000 waiting to be moved from DLA to PIP and that target was 2017.
    As calcotti says an increase in rent won't trigger a move to UC, so my advice would be just sit back and wait till it happens.
    2024 The year of the general election...the time for change is coming 💡

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  • calcotti
    calcotti Community member Posts: 10,010 Disability Gamechanger
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    woodbine said:
    Its true that the migration to UC has now started for those on legacy and the target for completion is 2024, 
    Only a small pilot project was started in Harrogate and that was suspended early last year, no managed migration is currently under way.
    The recent OBR Fiscal Outlook says
    A6 Universal credit (UC) managed migration: the Government has again paused the pilot phase of the UC managed migration scheme, this time until April 2022. The surge of new UC claims during the early stages of the pandemic led to a pause in managed migrations as operational capacity became stretched. It also increased the number of ‘natural migrations’ from legacy benefits, reducing anticipated managed migration volumes by 50,000. There remain around 3 million cases on the legacy benefits that will transfer to UC, with 1.6 million of those expected to go through managed migration. The full rollout is still assumed to finish in September 2026.
    At A26 it adds
    Universal credit (UC) rollout: the pandemic means the Government has delayed the managed migration phase of the UC pilot scheme until April 2022. While this is now almost three years later than first planned, it does not further extend the September 2026 end date, which remains nine years behind schedule.


    Information I post is for England unless otherwise stated. Rules may be different in other parts of UK.
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  • ukstevo7
    ukstevo7 Community member Posts: 3 Listener
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    The longer the better , it was bad enough when dla changed to pip.  
    Making it harder and more stressful just to make the cuts seem invisible to the public. 
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  • calcotti
    calcotti Community member Posts: 10,010 Disability Gamechanger
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    ukstevo7 said:
    Making it harder and more stressful just to make the cuts seem invisible to the public. 
    For many people UC pays more than legacy benefits.
    Information I post is for England unless otherwise stated. Rules may be different in other parts of UK.
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  • woodbine
    woodbine Community member Posts: 11,618 Disability Gamechanger
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    Thanks for that calcotti, i must have missed that, personally it's good news as esa pays me money UC wouldn't pay me a penny.
    2024 The year of the general election...the time for change is coming 💡

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  • calcotti
    calcotti Community member Posts: 10,010 Disability Gamechanger
    edited March 2021
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    It does depend on circumstances. For example:
    • People with SDP would get less UC, situation now improved by transitional protection.
    • People in ESA Support Group but without SDP often get more on UC.
    • People without disability benefits and with non dependants living in their household can be much better off on UC because non dependant deductions can be much higher on Housing Benefit than for UC.
    • Carers can claim UC with the carer element even if their earnings are over £128 which excludes them from Carer’s Allowance itself (and therefore from the carer premium in legacy benefits too).
    (Note - above comments apply even without the temporary Covid uplift to UC).
    Information I post is for England unless otherwise stated. Rules may be different in other parts of UK.
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  • woodbine
    woodbine Community member Posts: 11,618 Disability Gamechanger
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    I'm aware that in my circumstance all payments will cease when they move me to UC, it will be a race between that and getting my SRP.
    2024 The year of the general election...the time for change is coming 💡

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