Benefits

Are you and the person you are caring for getting everything you’re eligible for?

Financial difficulties can be an added pressure to your situation. Knowing what you are entitled to, can make a difference to your life as well as the person you care for. There are benefits just for carers, some for people with a disability, and some to help you if you have a low income. Remember, you can still claim some benefits if you work, have savings or own your own home.

What is available for you as a carer?

Carer’s Allowance

If you care for someone for more than 35 hours a week you may be eligible for Carers Allowance, the main benefit for carers. It is not means tested (although there is a cap on how much you can earn and still remain eligible) and it’s also taxable. The current rate of Carers Allowance is £64.60 a week.

Eligibility is dependent on a number of factors, including whether you:

• Look after someone who gets a qualifying disability benefit
• Are aged 16 or over
• Are in full-time education
• Earn £120 a week or less (after deductions)
• Meet UK presence and residence conditions

If you do meet the above criteria, but are already receiving certain benefits (include the State Retirement Pension), then the amount of Carer’s Allowance you receive may be affected.

Further information is available from the government website on this link

Carer’s Credit

If you care for someone for at least 20 hours a week, you may be able to claim Carer’s Credit, a National Insurance credit which helps with gaps in your National Insurance record. Your State Pension is based on your National Insurance record. If you are already in receipt of Carers Allowance or Child Benefit for a child under the age of 12, you will automatically be getting Carer’s Credit.

Eligibility for Carer’s Credit is not affected by the amount you have in savings or investments, or your income.

To get Carer’s Credit you must be:

• Aged 16 or over
• Under State Pension age
• Looking after one or more people for at least 20 hours a week

The person you’re looking after must receive one of the following:

• Disability Living Allowance (care component at the middle or highest rate)
• Attendance Allowance
• Constant Attendance Allowance
• Personal Independence Payment (PIP) - daily living component, at the standard or enhanced rate
• Armed Forces Independence Payment

Where there is no qualifying benefit it will be possible to claim on the basis of a signed certificate from a health or social care professional to confirm that the level of care being provided is appropriate.

Further information is available from the government website on this link

What is available for the person you care for?

Disability Living Allowance (DLA) – claimants must be under 16 years of age

If you care for a child with a health condition or who is disabled, they may be eligible claim to Disability Living Allowance (DLA). There are varying rates of DLA depending on the levels of care required.

DLA is not means tested or taxed, and does not affect any other benefits which are currently being claimed. In fact, it may even increase the amount of benefit you get, or help you qualify for other benefit support such as Carer’s Allowance or Tax credits.

To be eligible to claim DLA your child must:

• Be aged under 16 years
• Need substantially more care, attention and supervision than other children of the same age who do not have a health condition or disability
• Have had the disability or health condition for at least three months and likely that it will remain for a further six months (it is not necessary for an actual diagnosis to have been made). You may make the claim before the first three months have passed, but you will not receive any payment until after this time has passed.
• Have no immigration conditions attached to their stay in the UK, subject to certain exceptions
• Meet residence and presence conditions

If your child has a terminal illness, special rules apply to help you get support quickly. A child will be considered to be terminally ill if they have an illness which is likely to limit their life expectancy to six months or less.

These special rules mean that there does not have to be a three month qualifying period (as mentioned above) nor do they have to have been present in Great Britain for 104 weeks out of the last 156 weeks before claiming.

When claiming DLA under these circumstances you will need to include a form (DS1500) which is available from the GP or consultant treating your child.

Further information is available on government website with this link 

Personal Independence Payment (PIP)

This is paid to people who have daily living and/or mobility needs to support them with the costs incurred by long-term illness or disability.  It replaces Disability Living Allowance (DLA) for people aged between 16 and 64 (or who were under 65 on 8 April 2013).

Eligibility is not based on income, savings or your National Insurance contribution record and it is a tax free benefit. People working or studying may also be eligible.

Being in receipt of PIP does not reduce any other benefits and may even make you, or the person you care, eligible to receive further help, such as support with council tax.

Eligibility is based on some of the following criteria:

• The recipient must be aged between 16 and 64 years of age (or if you are being reassessed, you were under 65 on 8 April 2013)
• Satisfy the daily living and/or mobility activities test
• Have satisfied the daily living and/or mobility activities tests for at least three months and also be likely to continue to satisfy them for at least a further nine months after the initial three month qualifying period. The claim may be made before the first three months have passed, but no payment will be received until after this time has passed.
• There must be no immigration conditions attached to the claimant’s stay in the UK, subject to some exceptions
• The claimant must meet the residence and presence conditions which state they must have been present in Great Britain (which for this purpose also includes Northern Ireland) for 104 weeks out of the 156 weeks before claiming (two out of the last three years). They must be habitually resident.

For more information from the government website please click on this link 

Attendance Allowance

The person you care for may be eligible to claim Attendance Allowance if their ability to keep safe or look after their personal care, such as washing and dressing, is affected by disability, physical or mental illness. There are two levels of Attendance Allowance - £55.10 and £82.30 – and they are dependent on the level of disability.

Attendance Allowance is tax free, it is not means tested or affected by any other income or savings that a claimant has. There are two weekly rates - the lower rate is for care during the day, and the higher rate is for people needing help during the day and overnight.

Claimants must:

• Be aged 65 and over
• Need help looking after themselves because of a disability or illness
• Have had the disability or illness for at least six months. The claimant may apply before the first three months have passed, but no payment will be received until after this time has passed.
• There must be no immigration conditions attached to the claimant’s stay in the UK, subject to some exceptions
• The claimant must meet the residence and presence conditions which state they must have been present in Great Britain (which for this purpose also includes Northern Ireland) for 104 weeks out of the 156 weeks before claiming (two out of the last three years). They must be habitually resident.

Further information available by clicking on this link 

Trying to work out if you, or the person you care for, may be eligible for benefits can be quite complicated. If you would like more information and to discuss your eligibility (in confidence) with someone at West Cumbria Carers, please call the office on 01900 821976 to speak to one of the team or to make an appointment at one of our Benefits Clinics that we run throughout Allerdale and Copeland.

More information on all of the benefits you may be eligible to claim can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/carers-uk or by calling 0808 808 7777, Monday to Friday, 10am to 4pm.