Mum (widowed) on low income - HELP please!!

andrew_xlb

Hi all,

I really hope someone can help my Mum and I..it's a bit complicated, so if anything is unclear, please feel free to question me!

My Dad passed away last November, aged 65, leaving my Mum a widow. My Mum works nights in Tesco, and earns roughly £670 a month. For the first twelve months after Dad passed away, Mum was entitled to bereavement allowance (paid weekly)...however, that is now coming to an end.

To complicate things further, I own the house Mum lives in and she rents it from me. Mum has engaged with a debt counselling service who are managing her considerable debt..she has spoken to them regarding the reduction in her monthly income, and they have advised her that she may be asked to reduce her payments right down to a minimum for twelve months, after which her debt will be written off..

As you can imagine, Mum is anxious about how she will manage and has enquired about working tax credits (apparently she is not eligible)

Can anyone suggest who to ask or where to go to find out how Mum can see if there is any other benefit she is entitled to - PLEASE!

Thank you all!

Andrew

alwaysonthego_2

how old is she?

Vader123

How does the rental thing work?

Does she have a formal rental agreement with you and pays market rates? Or is it a private family arrangement?

Vader

andrew_xlb

Mum is 56 now and I did have a rental agreement in place for her and Dad to help them out with council tax discounts..

She pays me £450 a month for a 3 bed house...is below market rates...for all intents and purposes I would imagine it is classed as a private family arrangement, which is where we fall down. IE Mum is not "renting" privately and so is not eligible for rent relief or the like..is this right?

I don't want to sound like a scrounger, because I would never want to take money I was not due...but this is my Mum and she has always worked and paid taxes, so I see no shame in finding out what she could claim if at all possible..

Thanks again!

[Deleted User]

re the debts has she considered a "DRO" if she has less than £300 savings no real assets and less than £50 month disposable income?then after applying she makes NO further payments once the DRO is accepted and after 12 months they are totally written off,a DRO only cost £90

Oldernotwiser

andrew_xlb wrote: »

Mum is 56 now and I did have a rental agreement in place for her and Dad to help them out with council tax discounts..

She pays me £450 a month for a 3 bed house...is below market rates...for all intents and purposes I would imagine it is classed as a private family arrangement, which is where we fall down. IE Mum is not "renting" privately and so is not eligible for rent relief or the like..is this right?

I don't want to sound like a scrounger, because I would never want to take money I was not due...but this is my Mum and she has always worked and paid taxes, so I see no shame in finding out what she could claim if at all possible..

Thanks again!

Regardless of whether the rent is below market rates for a 3 bed house, don't forget that your mother will only be eligible for the applicable rate for 1 bed accommodation, even if you can prove that this is a genuine commercial tenancy.

alwaysonthego_2

andrew_xlb wrote: »

Mum is 56 now and I did have a rental agreement in place for her and Dad to help them out with council tax discounts..

She pays me £450 a month for a 3 bed house...is below market rates...for all intents and purposes I would imagine it is classed as a private family arrangement, which is where we fall down. IE Mum is not "renting" privately and so is not eligible for rent relief or the like..is this right?

I don't want to sound like a scrounger, because I would never want to take money I was not due...but this is my Mum and she has always worked and paid taxes, so I see no shame in finding out what she could claim if at all possible..

Thanks again!

If you have a rental agreement in place and are charging the going rate then there is no reason why she cannot claim for LHA.

How many hours does your mum work?


edit cross posted with ONW.

PasturesNew

How many hours/week does she work? If it is 30 hours and if she lives in the house alone, she could get Working Tax Credit, although for a single person it wouldn't be more than about £40/week.

andrew_xlb

@ Pastures New - Mum works about 30-40 hours a week..She has previously applied for Working Tax Credits and was told she did not qualify...

LilacPixie

your mother should qualify for working tax credits if she works over 30 hours a week and her gross income is less than 13ish k. with a take home pay of 670ish she must be earning around 760 every 4 weeks or just under 10k a year so she should qualify.

andrew_xlb

Thank you for all the useful information, I will help Mum apply for working tax credits in that case and hope her circumstances render her eligible.