CARERS ALLOWANCE

A few weeks ago I told you that I had received forms to complete to claim for Carers Allowance, I had not asked for them but decided to fill them in and send them off.

I received a letter today stating :-

You are entitled to £59. 75p a week Carers Allowance from the 22nd April, 2013.

We cannot pay you from the 22nd April, 2013 because your state pension is more than the Carers Allowance.

So in actual fact I am entitled to it but cannot have it. If I am entitled to it, why can't I have it.

I looked up what 'entitled to' actually meant and it said by law you should get it.

The mind boggles. I am no wiser.

[stone-UK]

Hi

In simple terms, if a person is entitled to more than one means tested benefit , then they will only receive the higher of the two.

Have you checked to make sure that, both you and your partner are receiving all the benefits you are entitled to.

[mogli712]

Have you discussed this with the helplines specialist advisers.

[Hidden]

I think it was explained to you several times on here that if you are in receipt of a state pension it means you do not qualify for carers' allowance. The allowance is to compensate for being a carer causing a loss of income. Getting a pension (which is more than carers' allowance) means it will not be paid. It is worked out like this so that people cannot claim several benefits at once, the state only paying the highest rated one.

[Hidden]

Hi

It's called the "Overlapping Benefits Rule" - this rule has been around for years.

You can't get both Carers benefit and State Pension at the same time if your state pension is equal to or more than the Carers benefit.

Overlapping Benefits Regulations - Regs 4,6 &9.

There is nothing that you can do about it I am afraid.

Thanks

Mark

[Hidden]

Thank you for all your comments, but I don't think of the State pension as being a Benefit as I paid the full national insurance stamp (did not opt out to the low womens stamp like most of my friends) for 55 years so I still cannot get it through my head why it is classed as a benefit. If I had opted out of the full stamp in the 1980's, I would have had more money in my wage packet and been allowed now to claim carers allowance. So by thinking of my future I had more money taken from my wage in order for me not to be able to claim this benefit. Just not fair.

[Hidden]

I agree with that, everyone who has paid sufficient national insurance is entitled to the State Pension, it should not be classed as a "benefit". Unfortunately those are the rules, you have an "underlying entitlement" to the Carers Allowance but because of the "overlapping benefits" rule you won't receive anything. It's iniquitous.

I also think it's wrong that the State Pension is classed as taxable income. So it's income when the govt wants to charge you tax on it, but benefit when they want to avoid paying you an allowance to which you're entitled. Why should you spend your retirement caring for your sick husband, saving the state £000s per year in doing so, and not receive some help? It's outrageous and I'd feel jolly miffed too.

ff x

[equico69]

You won't get the benefit but you may be entitled to council tax benefit . Many years ago my mother was claiming carers allowance for looking after my father she wasn't entitled to the money but the premium which meant that they were allowed more money to live on therefore they were entitled to full council tax benefit they had been a few pounds over the allowable amount before

[tanyamarie]

Agree whole heartedly with you sweetthing and ff, and what really gets me too is that if you have the ability to be able to save for your retirement to make you more comfortable etc as opposed to just spending etc, why should that impact your entitlement to various benefits etc.

Just my opinion but hey ho, it's off to work I go lol!

[Hidden]

But that is why benefits were originally put in place - to look after those who had no provision and needed help, not for everyone or the system goes bankrupt.

[warwickstag]

No need for anyone to go bankrupt if the causes of all this hardship, the greedy bankers and Camerons sleezy city mates were brought to account for all the misery they're causing. This country has immense wealth, the problem is the majority of it is owned by a very select few, who are very good at holding on to every last drop of their obscene wealth , avoiding paying tax with impunity and couldn't give two hoots about the hard earned benefit entitlements of the likes of sweetthing. Come next week these hard done to toffs will receive a tax reduction of 5% worth thousands, courtesy of Mr Osborne whilst honest working and sick people face being evicted from their homes and relying on soup kitchens to eat and feed their children, and we play the game of life with the post code lottery in desperate hope that the NHS can still help us.

[Hidden]

Thank you for all your comments. The Carers allowance forms keep turning up, just received some more to fill in, goodness knows why as I have been told I have too much state pension to claim it, but never mind, I have ripped them up and put them in the recycle bin.