Do you have to be related to the person you care for to claim Carers Element on Universal Credit?

ponies
ponies Online Community Member Posts: 119 Contributor
edited April 2021 in Universal Credit (UC)
Do you have to be related to the person you care for to claim Carers Element on Universal Credit 
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  • ponies
    ponies Online Community Member Posts: 119 Contributor
    Also will it affect Council Tax 
  • janer1967
    janer1967 Online Community Member Posts: 21,922 Championing
    Hi there 

    Simple answer no 
  • ponies
    ponies Online Community Member Posts: 119 Contributor
    Thank you once again Janer1967
  • calcotti
    calcotti Online Community Member Posts: 10,000 Championing
    Be aware that if you claim carer element of UC they will lose the Severe Disability Premium if they are getting it in any benefits they claim.
  • ponies
    ponies Online Community Member Posts: 119 Contributor
    The person gets Attendance Allowance 
    at lower rate. He is married & gets a state pension & claims for himself & his wife. They also get a bit of pension credit. His wife will be getting her own state pension in June 2021. Then they won’t be getting any pension credit, as wife has paid enough contributions to be entitled to any pension credit.
  • ponies
    ponies Online Community Member Posts: 119 Contributor
    Would they be entitled to claim S.D.P. 

  • calcotti
    calcotti Online Community Member Posts: 10,000 Championing
    ponies said:
    Would they be entitled to claim S.D.P. 
    Only if wife gets a disability benefit also. If not, then no.
  • ponies
    ponies Online Community Member Posts: 119 Contributor
    Okay thanks calcotti
  • ponies
    ponies Online Community Member Posts: 119 Contributor
    If both husband and wife get Attendance Allowance do they then qualify for S.D.A
  • ponies
    ponies Online Community Member Posts: 119 Contributor
    If someone claims a Carers element who receives Universal Credit who caring for one of them, would they still be able to get S.D.A if they are both receiving A.A.
  • calcotti
    calcotti Online Community Member Posts: 10,000 Championing
    edited May 2021
    ponies said:
    If both husband and wife get Attendance Allowance do they then qualify for S.D.A

    If someone claims a Carers element who receives Universal Credit who caring for one of them, would they still be able to get S.D.A if they are both receiving A.A.
    If both husband and wife get AA and nobody claims CA for looking after them then are entitled to a double SDP in the Pension Credit calculation.

    If both husband and wife get AA and somebody claims CA for looking after one of them then are entitled to a single SDP in the Pension Credit calculation.

    If both husband and wife get AA and there are two people claiming CA for looking after them then there is no SDP entitlement. 

    Note - SDP is not a separate benefit. It is an additional amount included in the calculation of the Pension Credit amount payable. If they had other income there might still be no Pension Credit payable. Each SDP is worth £67.30/week whereas the carer element of UC is only worth £163.73/month (equivalent to £37.78/week).
  • calcotti
    calcotti Online Community Member Posts: 10,000 Championing
    edited May 2021
    Username_removed said:
    If both claim AA then it makes more sense to claim CA for caring for each other. That would establish underlying entitlements to CA i.e. it wouldn’t be paid because SRPs were in but consequently you get double SDP and a couples rate CP.
    Thanks Mike - I should have spotted that!
  • ponies
    ponies Online Community Member Posts: 119 Contributor
    What does SRPs ?
    if only one of them have a Carer, can the other one on A.A get SDA 
  • ponies
    ponies Online Community Member Posts: 119 Contributor
    Or they would be better off to claim care allowance for each other.
    Also will their pension credit entitlement stop altogether when one of them gets her retirement pension if She has paid enough stamps over the years. At present Husband claims for both of them on his retirement pension & gets some pension credit included 
  • calcotti
    calcotti Online Community Member Posts: 10,000 Championing
    ponies said:
    What does SRPs ?
    State Retirement Pension
  • calcotti
    calcotti Online Community Member Posts: 10,000 Championing
    edited May 2021
    ponies said:
    Or they would be better off to claim care allowance for each other.
    Also will their pension credit entitlement stop altogether when one of them gets her retirement pension if She has paid enough stamps over the years. At present Husband claims for both of them on his retirement pension & gets some pension credit included 
    It depends on their entitlement and how much her pension is. Pension Credit entitlement will be worked out as a maximum amount and then the pension income (and any other relevant deductions) will be deducted. The amount left is the Pension Credit payable. Has she had a pension forecast?
  • ponies
    ponies Online Community Member Posts: 119 Contributor
    Yes She has had a pension forecast as She’s due to reach state pension. Was told She wouldn’t be entitled to pension credit or council tax, as it will be classed as an overlapping payment. She gets Carers Allowance at the moment for looking after a family member, but was told that will also stop 
  • ponies
    ponies Online Community Member Posts: 119 Contributor
    She has paid NI contributions & was told because of them, together with her pension, her husbands pension they won’t be entitled to P.C.
    was also told She will not qualify for Carers Allowance.

  • ponies
    ponies Online Community Member Posts: 119 Contributor
    I thought you could still be a Carer on Pensions then it would be classed as an underlying payment when calculating there entitlement to both of their pensions 
  • ponies
    ponies Online Community Member Posts: 119 Contributor
    Giving them entitlement to some P.C. & Council Tax reduction

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