worth claiming as a couple?

molly192

i have a 2 (almost 3year old) who has suspected autism (no disability benifits claimed here) i currently get child ben, tax cred, income support, i also get housing benifits...

my partner of over 2years (not my childs father) has slight OCD gets DLA and carers allowence, he has a one bedroom house (council)...

we are considering moving in together but would we be worse of better off together?

we are considering moving in together and getting jobs if its worth it but been told its not worth it as a couple? plus we are worried because there are little jobs going and they might not be long term, if we lose our jobs thenwe might end up alot worse off?

would really be grateful for any ideas or suggestions.

Indie_Kid

But if you claim as a couple, you'll have less outgoings. (well, bills will be cheaper)

molly192

i say slight but he is often house bound for hours sometimes days and social aspects of life are very difficult because of his he is highly medicated to reduce this which basically sedates him.

Breast_Cancer_Survivor

molly192 wrote: »

i have a 2 (almost 3year old) who has suspected autism (no disability benifits claimed here) i currently get child ben, tax cred, income support, i also get housing benifits...

my partner of over 2years (not my childs father) has slight OCD gets DLA and carers allowence, he has a one bedroom house (council)...

we are considering moving in together but would we be worse of better off together?

we are considering moving in together and getting jobs if its worth it but been told its not worth it as a couple? plus we are worried because there are little jobs going and they might not be long term, if we lose our jobs thenwe might end up alot worse off?

would really be grateful for any ideas or suggestions.

Why don't you claim DLA for your autistic child when your bf claims for OCD?

smashee72

I did think the purpose of this forum was to assist/advise people in the best and most positive way possible. If that is impossible to do then is it not better to move on to a post where we can have something positive to input....? Or have I totally misread what this forum is all about?
The man would not have qualified for the DLA if it did not affect him greatly in his day to day business ... Being highly medicated and house bound for days on end would not be much fun I would imagine.
Molly if your partner is in receipt of any care component of DLA then if he gets a job he may be entitled to the disability element of working tax credit

Indie_Kid

Breast_Cancer_Survivor wrote: »

Why don't you claim DLA for your autistic child when your bf claims for OCD?

Depends if the child has more care needs than one of his own age. You can't just get DLA because you have a disability - you must have care and /or mobility needs.

Breast_Cancer_Survivor

sh1305 wrote: »

Depends if the child has more care needs than one of his own age. You can't just get DLA because you have a disability - you must have care and /or mobility needs.

Most autistic children (if not all) will have more care needs than a normal child thats all I was saying, it would be worth the op applying even if they do get turned down.

molly192

A) my son is too young to get anything and he doesn't get anymore care than a normal 2year old, he is still in a pram but so are alot of kids he has alot of appointments but they are local usually so unable to claim travelling expenises, my partner gets minimal help, and would be able to get help if he worked, he is willing to work even if it would be hellish for him and his OCD.

thank you for positive imput was really put off by people being so negative, not asking for life advice just legal and benifit advice!

Indie_Kid

You can claim DLA for a 2 year old.

Breast_Cancer_Survivor

molly192 wrote: »

A) my son is too young to get anything and he doesn't get anymore care than a normal 2year old, he is still in a pram but so are alot of kids he has alot of appointments but they are local usually so unable to claim travelling expenises, my partner gets minimal help, and would be able to get help if he worked, he is willing to work even if it would be hellish for him and his OCD.

thank you for positive imput was really put off by people being so negative, not asking for life advice just legal and benifit advice!

Hi Molly, if someone suspects your son has autism then surely you are having some problems already, my 2 sons weren't diagnosed until they were 9/10.

I find it really hard filling out DLA forms for them as they seem completely normal to me too but thats because im used to them & im autistic too.

AsknAnswer2

Your son is too young only to receive the lower rate mobility, the age bracket on that is 5 years. For all of the care components and for the higher rate mobility component of DLA he is not too young.

You may think that your son does not receive any more care than the average child of his age, but have you sat down and really considered it? Sometimes it is hard as a parent to tell the difference between where being "mum" stops and becoming a "carer" begins. I didn't claim DLA for my daughter for ages because I didn't think she needed any more care than any other child her age - until I was faced with writing a report for the occupational therapist on her care needs. It was sitting down and really thinking about it that made me realise just how much extra care she needs compared to another child her age. I also didn't claim earlier because I felt that as her mother it was my duty to care for her and I shouldn't recieve money for that. Yes it would have been her claim, but I would have received the money. As time went on, I found it more and more difficult to afford some of the things she needs and applied for DLA - I got it first time, and it does help toward the cost of things she needs that the NHS don't provide and which I would otherwise struggle more to afford.

There is a link to a benefit calculator below so that you can enter your and your other half's circumstances and finances as if you lived together - it will give you an idea of how different things might be, but also bear in mind that instead of two outgoings for gas, electric and phone etc you would only have one which would bring the cost down.

Hope this helps.

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