Pension credit query

Froglet

To be honest i thought it probably was the case that pensions could be taken into account, but couldn't find it anywhere.Then i read that website i quoted.How can they get it so wrong?

It really is a minefield,and deciding what to do with the pensions will be another one.

No wonder when people have nought(and i only mean those who are lazy,and wasted their money all their lives) it is easier to live off benefits.But some of us have more pride,have worked and saved hard and gone without to cater for their future.

xylophone

In the third link I posted to Age UK was a link to this fact sheet Fact Sheet http://
_income_and_means_tested_benefits_fcs.pdf.pdf?dtrk=true
This paragraph is of interest

"Sometimes you may be treated as having income that you do not actually
have. This is known as notional income. This might happen if you fail to apply
for income you are entitled to, or if you have deliberately got rid of income
with the intention of increasing your benefit entitlement. You should seek
further advice if this rule is applied to you.

You might find this thread on SIPPS of interest in respect of rules which appear to be applied to deferred pensions and TAX CREDITS (rather than means tested benefits https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/3657589

You spoke of a form in your first post - was it this one?
http://www.nidirect.gov.uk/pension_credit_form_pc1_04_11.pdf

There are completion notes here http://www.nidirect.gov.uk/pension_credit_completion_notes_04_11_final.pdf

bottom of page 5 is of interest.

Froglet

Hi,no it was ageuk,i also filled in the form on the directgov website.Neither mentioned private pensions.But if you defer your state pension then you are deemed to be avoiding income you should be getting.

It's all getting complicated.

Pollycat

Froglet wrote: »

It's all getting complicated.

Can you put it all on the back burner and enjoy Christmas & New Year and then go back to thinking about it?

:xmastree::xmassign:

anmarj

Froglet wrote: »

Hi,no it was ageuk,i also filled in the form on the directgov website.Neither mentioned private pensions.But if you defer your state pension then you are deemed to be avoiding income you should be getting.

It's all getting complicated.

the loop hole for State Pension and Pension Credit has been closed, as from April this year, if you do not claim your State Pension, not only is it taken into account as income but they no longer get the deferral options. A case of a recovery would have to happen and the person would only get any difference if there was money due

Froglet

Update on what i have found out.Unbelievably when i rang the pension credit helpline I STILL got told private and occupational pensions would not be taken into account,but there was something about the way she answered my questions that made me unsure of what she was saying.

So i left it till yesterday and first rang age uk,the chap there went off for ages but came back to say ,yes they would be.Then i rang pension credit again,and finally got someone who knew what he was talking about and confirmed the same.

We looked into what his pensions would bring in terms of an income earlier this year and so we now know for sure we would not be entitled to anything.So thanks to all of you who took the time to reply and warn me that not everything you read on a supposedly official website is true!

However he is still at work,hanging on but not for much longer i fear,and is applying for anything half possible.So i spoke to the jobseekers people yesterday and she said that it is very unlikely,because of the circumstances surrounding him wishing to leave(stress related) he would be penalised for long,if at all.So although it would only be for 6 months we would get anything, at least it buys us some more time.

BevieB

Froglet wrote: »

Yes i work but only one day a week with no chance of any more hours.I also have 2 elderly and sick members of the family i care for,which takes up a lot of time.I am 58, he will be 61 in January.
We can get the guaranteed pension credit but not the savings,no.I have inputted all our details into a rough ready reckoner,it come out at very little,less than the jobseekers.

Do the people you care for rec DLA/AA as if you care for more that 35 hours pwk you could qualify for Carers Allowance/ carers premium on Pension Credit/Council Tax Benefits.

Marisan

Froglet,your situation exactly mirrors that of my husband and me.Hubby has a chronic back condition called spondylolisthesis for which he is awaiting hospital treatment.His job involves standing all day,lifting heavy materials (he works in a wood mill) bending and twisting.Like your other half,he also has a horrible boss (won't even allow heaters to be on so workers are always cold).I think his condition has been worsened by his work conditions.Our GP will not let him return to work and has said that she is happy to sign him off altogether (he is 61) but that the Government will say that he must find something.Hubby has worked since he was 15 and feels,quite rightly I think,that he has done his bit.We were living on SSP of £81.60 until someone told us that hubby was eligible for Pension Credit Guarantee element,which he applied for and got.We are not extravagant,and along with the associated benefits this brings,we can live okay.Hubby's SSP will end in April of this year,and although he will remain technically employed I really can't see him returning to the work he has been doing,and I know that he really doesn't want to.Frankly,he's had enough.
I too was wondering how he would be treated if he were to finish work of his own choice,as you say,would he be penalised? if it is possible for him to stay on Pension Credit until he reaches 65 (3and a half years away) we could manage okay.

Froglet

Hi Marisan.You do not have to apply for job seekers,it sounds as if you would be much better off keeping on claiming pension credit.So he could leave with no come back,or if he wanted he could at least try after a while and see what he would be better off doing,but not if he can't work.

We can't,we know that,and his doctor won't sign him off for stress,or at least he wouldn't years ago,and in any case we would get very little in sick pay plus he would still have the job to go back to,like your hubby.

Things are getting really bad now,he has approached his boss and when he asked if he could go back to his original job,which he liked and signed up for in the first place,or,if he couldn't could they make him redundant she turned really nasty and it was a case of take it or leave it.He is now expected also to do the job they have just made another worker redundant for,other extra duties,running here there and everywhere at a moments notice so he can't get his own important work done without interruptions,and more hours with no extra pay.The attitude is you are damn lucky to still have a job.Yes he knows that but at what cost?. I have seen him change so much since all this upset.

I think he really is on the point of handing in his notice.

Marisan

Hi Froglet,

I really do feel for you and your hubby,as I have seen my hubby come home worn out,freezing cold and in such a temper from some crass remark his boss has made or something else that has upset him at work.I think some bosses are stuck in the 19th century!What happened to duty of care? Too many employers don't care at all.Once,when some of the workers at my hubby's place did speak up the boss just shrugged and said he would shut the place down - and he would,as he has already made his money out of them.
As for redundancy,there's no chance,hubby has been there for 18 years and they don't want to pay what it would cost.
Froglet,I have a friend who has been off work for six months with job-related stress - could your hubby approach a different doctor? -some are more sympathetic than others.Stress can make you very ill.
Do you know what makes me angry? That people who have worked all their lives seem to be penalised,while those who have never worked (by choice,I mean) or who have loads of children they can't support without state help,get everything!

Hope things work out for you,Froglet.