In a Mess - Need Some Advice Please!

Lovaabargain

My husband, who has been self-employed for 16 years, has had to put his company into liquidation this week & I don't know what we do next with regards to claiming benefits. He has had no income for the past 2 months & we've contacted our mortgage provider to be told that they don't do mortgage payment holidays but will change our payments to interest only for 3 months, but this is still nearly £900.00 per mth, plus council tax & all his other monthly loans & direct debits! we have only got my wage of £259 per mth coming in atm & also have a very hefty tax bill to pay - just don't know where to turn - there is no CAB in this area - where else can we get free advice from?

Please, please can someone point me in the right direction as we've got 4 children under the age of 16 & having never ever claimed any sort of benefit before I just don't know what to do next!

Thanks!

Bossyboots

I've got to go, but the first thing that springs to mind is that you need to apply for Council Tax Benefit. This is means tested over the year of the claim but as it is only June now, you may well get a full benefit for this year meaning that you have no council tax to pay.

Lovaabargain

Thanks for the reply Bossyboots, we have spoken to the Council Tax office & they have advised my husband to go to the Job Centre & they will advise him how to get the benefit - so he's gone straight there.

chugalug

Short term, your husband can claim JSA and as you've already found, council tax benefit. If you already claim tax credits for the children call the IR and let them know your income has dropped so your claim can be adjusted. I don't know if the JSA will be contribution based or income based but either way you should qualify for free school dinners and free prescriptions etc on your current income. There won't be any help for your mortgage interest immediately - you'll have to wait up to 39 weeks (depending when you took your mortgage out). I don't know if JSA will be sanctioned if your husband put his business into liquidation - if so you will receive reduced income support until any possible appeal has been heard.

In the short term then - JSA, CTB, tax credits.

In the long term, you'll need to consider that you are likely to fall behind with payments until either you or your husband can replace your income. Once you've sorted out the short term income problem it might be an idea to seek out more help from CAB - they can help with debt, other benefits, housing and anything else you might need advice with (ie your tax bill). HTH

stellagypsy

AFAIK, self employed can't claim for unemployment so it will have to be income based and possibly income support rather than JSA - OP's wage will be taken in to consideration - might even be CTC / WTC (depending on how many hours OP works) / CBEN / Wages. Should get some Council Tax Benefit, but possibly not all. Will only get free school meals etc if income support or IB JSA awarded.

It's a real minefield but you must ensure that you get all the claims in as soon as possible and ask for back dated benefits to when husband stopped working - also write to all creditors and explain situation, so everyone knows where they stand. You might even want to look at contacting Payplan or CCCS if you are going to have problems paying for credit cards / bank loans, etc. The DFW board is also full of advice on prioritising debts / cutting your outgoings to the bone.

Also - just a thought - is there any possibility of OP working exxtra hours or husband taking a temporary job as you will almost certainly get more money than being on benefits.

HTH, Stella xx

chugalug

Just wanted to add a couple of things to the above post -

You can get free school meals if your total household earnings are under 13000 and something and you don't receive any WTC with your tax credits.

You can claim JSA if you're self employed provided you've paid the correct NI contributions in the right year.

Yes, the OP's income will be taken into account for JSA and/or IS claim.

You normally have to show a reason why you didnt claim benefits at the correct time when asking for claims to be backdated ie illness, bereavement etc. but you can appeal any decision not to backdate.

HTH

mrsh_2

Your husband will not receive contributory JSA as the self employed stamp does not qualify for this.
Your wages will be calculated to a weekly amount and the first £10 a week ignored, but the remainder deducted from his JSA, eg you earn £50, £40 is deducted from his JSA. You must be working less than 24hrs a week.
He will need to provide his accounts etc to show the company has been liquidated.
Definitely let tax credits know your income has reduced.