can i claim?

I work part time am disabled & husband's recently been diagnosed with M.E. Have been told can't claim Incapacity, income support, jobseekers nor disability. Have been told to claim WTC but is based on last years income when my husband was working, is there nothing we can do? Please help if u can

Really need a bit more information about the hours you or/and your husband work.
If your husband has been working and is no longer able to work he should be able to claim Incapacity Benefit. DWP Benefits list He will need to have a NI contributions record and meet the Personal Capability Assessment criteria PCA criteria calculator Although ME is not a mental health criteria many people with this condition also experience depression. As the condition can vary in it's effects from day to day it may be necessary for the Mental Health criteria section of the test also to be applied so ensuring his doctor is fully aware of the effect of ME on his mental health may be prudent and enable both physical and mental test thresholds to apply.

He may also want to consider claiming Disability Living Allowance Try the two minute test from Benefitsandwork dla guide

With both these claims there is a prospect of failure and having a properly prepared claim form is very helpful. As checks will also be made with your GP it's helpful if your doctor is fully aware of the care and mobility needs through the day and night. There is a checklist at the back of the DLAguide and it's worth using this to make sure the surgery knows how badly he's affected. Using a Welfare Rights professional to help with your claim does make it more likely they will support you should the claim fail and you have to go to appeal. If you don't know where the CAB office is or your local equivalent try the guide here Getting Help with your Benefits

If you are on a low income you may be able to claim housing benefit/council tax benefit. Your local authority will more than likely have their own calculator but there is one here which will give you an idea Web benefits Calculator

I can't see any reason why you shouldn't claim WTC on your current hours and based on last years wages but notify them of the current changes to his income.

I applied for DLA in August last year for ME/CFS. I was predictably turned down and asked straight away for a review and was...predictably turned down (in 6 days!), i then asked for an appeal hearing which was yesterday and was awarded Higher Rate Mobility and Higher Rate Care for 2 years. DLA is not a means tested benefit so it is paid regardless of what i earn or anything else i may claim now or in the future. I think the best advice is - 1) see a CAB adviser ASAP and 2) dont give up or be intimidated by the forms and language they use.

The review can seem very final esp when they get their 'expert medical evidence' from someone who has never met you and it all too easy to take personally - dont give up - ok, the tribunal hearing is not much fun (a panel of three - the chair, a doctor and a lay person who is usually from a disability rights organisation or something similar) but i am now £100 a week better off than i was in August and i will receive the backdated payments to the date i phoned for the forms

Dont try to do any of it on your own - you have enough to think about with dealing with your illness and a CAB adviser deals with cases like ours every day - if you get awarded higher rate care and/or higher rate mobility you will automatically be entitled to other things which your CAB adviser will tell you about (blue badge, two for one cinema tickets, higher premiums on any benefits you claim etc)

Rahab wrote:

I work part time am disabled & husband's recently been diagnosed with M.E. Have been told can't claim Incapacity, income support, jobseekers nor disability. Have been told to claim WTC but is based on last years income when my husband was working, is there nothing we can do? Please help if u can

If you are working more than 16 hours (as you are disabled) and your CURRENT year's income is low then you will receive WTC. Yes, when you initially apply you will be asked for both your husband's and your own income for the tax year 2003-2004 - that is a starting block. When your award is issued you will be told - if your income goes below the income in the previous tax year, or if it goes £2,500 above that income telephone the tax credit helpline and provide an estimated income for the tax year 2004-2005. Your current year income is what dictates your current year entitlement.

breezerockz wrote: »

thanks for this usefull advice, i have had me/cfs for 5 years now, and havent applied for dla as have heard cfs/me rarely get in without a big fight, n i can fight my way out of my bed. will try and look further into it.

Some Citizens Advice Bureaux do home visits so it is worth giving them a ring to see if they can visit you if you have difficulty getting out of bed etc.