need help dont no how this esa works and what is the diffrents esa income related and what is support group ?

[katiejo]

hi my husband has been on sick now for 3mth and has just been told he can get esa has had his medical and said he will get £105 week this is not income related . we dont understand any of this he had worked all his life never been on benefits befor .he has had a kidney transpland 25yr always worked but now it has failed and he is ill .will not be going back to work ,is this all we will get to live on ? i have no incum i dont work as i look after him and will ,we are pulling our hair out dont no were to start can anyone tell us what to do ??

[lkic]

When you go on ESA you can either be put on ESA contribution based or ESA income related. My son went on ESA contribution based, which I assume is what your husband is on and this can be paid for 365 days and is based on the contributions you have made through working. After 365 days you then have to go on ESA income based, the difference between them is as I understand it your families income is taken into account and if you have a partner who works then you can be left with nothing. My son has no partner and has been on ESA for over a year and after 3 months was sent for a medical which he failed, then had to go to tribunal, which he won, then 3 months later he had to go for another medical at which he was found to be unfit for work. He has been receiving ESA for over a year now and has not had to fill in a form advising them what income he has, he has no income actually. I have tried to find out more about this but on the DWP website the rules are stated and yet this has not been my son's experience. I would assume your husband will be entitled to ESA contributions based for 365 days providing he passes the medicals. I would advise that if you go for a medical take any letters from doctors or consultants with you as we never did this the first time and he failed but we did the second time and he passed. I hope this is helpful.

[katiejo in reply to lkic]

hi thanks for your reply , my husband has past his madical 4 weeks ago .he is getting dla now also been on phone to them 2day they said they lost his last pay slip thats why he not getting esa but we sent it to them about 9 weeks ago ... they said might get it sorted as soon as we send it again also he is in suport groop so just has wait see now again

[Adamine]

Hi,

Has he applied for DLA (disability living allowance) - if he were to get that at the middle to higher rate then you would also get carers allowance. I only know this as my has special needs and gets it.

Maybe worth a try??

[katiejo in reply to Adamine]

thanks for your reply , my hubby is just found out he getting dla higher rate and waiting see if he gets esa also dont no what we get just have wait see x

[Adamine]

If he gets DLA at higher rate, he should also get mobility and you can get carers allowance... It should all help. You should also get help with your council tax??

x

[katiejo in reply to Adamine]

is DLA not the same as mobility ? and if he get higher rate of dla thinks he gets carers with it ? im not very good at this stuff never had claim nothing befor always been work .. all i no is it reaal hard get it sorted out and when your not well it very stresfull for him .

[Sue2803 in reply to katiejo]

I recently lost my job through ill health retirement and didnt really know which way to turn, my best advice is to go the C A B, they can tell you all the benefits you are entitled too and they help you complete all the forms.

[Adamine]

I'm no expert, but my son gets DLA. Gov.direct has a website that will tell you abt it.

DLA care comes in 3 levels - low, middle and high. If you get Middle or high - then someone can claim carers allowance for caring for you.

Also - if you get the high rate care - you should be able to claim for motability

That is my understanding of it - but you can check on the website... Plus on the DLA award it will say exactly what you have been awarded.

There is also a benefits checking website that you can enter your details into and it will tell you is you are able to claim any other benefits. CAB is also very good at filling out DLA forms for you and giving benefits advise. I always use CAB when I need to renew my sons claim.

Hope that helps

x

[kulie13]

There is a lot of confusion here because of the 2 different parts of DLA. One half is called the care component (available at low, middle or high rates), and it is true that if you get middle or high rate care then someone else MAY be able to claim carer's allowance as well. However, the other half is called the mobility component (available at low or high rates). If you get high rate mobility then you MAY be able to use the money to fund a car through a private company called Motability (they are new, and all you pay for is petrol), or you can just use the money for your own car, or taxis, or whatever transport option you want. You need to be clear which component you are talking about when you discuss rates of DLA, as the mobility component doesn't enable anyone to get carer's allowance - but does enable you to get a blue badge. Get some help from an advice agency to claim it.

The original question was about ESA - if your husband is in the work related activity group on a contribution basis, he will only have this for 365 days and then he will be eligible for the means-tested ESA if you have no other money. If he is in the support group, you don't have to worry about this - but ask the Jobcentre to check that they have done the means-tested check anyway, because if he gets high rate care DLA there may be an extra premium payable.