Housing Benefit/ Pension Credit and compensation

dweep

Can anyone advise if any possible compensation awarded by an Employment Tribunal in an Equal Pay claim (which has been dragging on for years) can affect Housing Benefit and Pension Credit ? Since I have been retired I have been receiving both.

real1314

Yes.

It can affect it. How much depends on what you got and exactly which benefit elements you get. It's impossible to give a precise answer without details though.

pmlindyloo

dweep wrote: »

Can anyone advise if any possible compensation awarded by an Employment Tribunal in an Equal Pay claim (which has been dragging on for years) can affect Housing Benefit and Pension Credit ? Since I have been retired I have been receiving both.

How much compensation are we talking about?

If you receive Guarantee Pension Credit you are allowed to have £10000 in savings before any deductions are made and then they can take £1 per week for any £500 or part of above this.

However, two things to note.

if you are over 65 years of age then you may have been awarded an Assessed Income Period. During this time you do not have to notify them of any changes in capital. Check your Pension Credit award letter.

Pension Credit are much more reasonable amount spending any savings so if you have any updates that you need to make to your home - new bed, new fridge etc as long as they are reasonable then it would be OK to spend the money. Going on an expensive holiday may not be allowed!

Any amount of Guarantee Pension Credit gives you automatic entitlement to HB.

dweep

Thanks for the above replies.


It's been difficult trying to work out what to do for the best. Based on the figures given way back at the beginning of all this, I was told if the case was successful I could receive approximately £5000-£6000.


I do have savings of just under £8000. As I understand it, if I go over, for example up to £13,000 savings (because of any compensation award) I would have to lose £1 for every excess £500, a loss of £10 per week in Housing Benefit (I think you lose £1 per week for every £500 between £8000-£16000). Over a year that would be a loss of £520, over 10 years £5200, so it kind of cancels out any financial benefits accruing from any compensation.


I suspect I'm moving towards abandoning the claim. It would only make sense to continue if any award was more substantial and would make an overall difference to my life in the long term which £5/6000
wouldn't, given that benefits would be affected.

pmlindyloo

dweep wrote: »

Thanks for the above replies.


It's been difficult trying to work out what to do for the best. Based on the figures given way back at the beginning of all this, I was told if the case was successful I could receive approximately £5000-£6000.


I do have savings of just under £8000. As I understand it, if I go over, for example up to £13,000 savings (because of any compensation award) I would have to lose £1 for every excess £500, a loss of £10 per week in Housing Benefit (I think you lose £1 per week for every £500 between £8000-£16000). Over a year that would be a loss of £520, over 10 years £5200, so it kind of cancels out any financial benefits accruing from any compensation.


I suspect I'm moving towards abandoning the claim. It would only make sense to continue if any award was more substantial and would make an overall difference to my life in the long term which £5/6000
wouldn't, given that benefits would be affected.

Please re read my previous post.

Are you on guarantee Pension Credit?

Are you on an assessed income period?

dweep

Yes, I'm on Guarantee pension credit.


But I haven't had any notification of being on an Assessed Income Period. I was 65 only one month ago, so maybe they haven't got around to sending a letter out.


The last letter sent to me in June was a standard letter:


"We need to make sure you are getting the right amount of PC. The current amount is based on the information given to us previously. We now need to check this information to keep our records up to date." They say they will contact me in the future.


The previous letter in February was just one telling me the amounts I would be receiving up to April 6th (I had recently let them know I had moved) and the amount I would be receiving after April 7th.
There is also a mention of an increase of nearly £6.80 a week from a couple of days following my 65th birthday which took me by surprise.


About this the letter says "Due to a further change from (date, a couple of days after 65th my birthday) you will get (my previous rate from April 7th + nearly £6. 80 on top). This is because there is a change in the amount the law says you need to live on"


But as I say no mention in either letter of an Assessed Income period.

pmlindyloo

It could be that you will receive an assessed income period after your 65th birthday.

If you have £13000 in savings and have no assessed income period then would would have approx. £6 a week deducted from your Pension Credit.

Would this still mean that you were entitled to any Guarantee pension Credit?

Even a £1 a week award of Pension Credit means that you would automatically be entitled to HB and CT reduction. They would be exactly the same amounts. They would not change.

It seems daft to give up your compensation claim when your loss is only £6 a week.

Besides which you could easily get your savings down to £10000 if you wanted no loss in benefits. If you have nothing you want to spend the money on then why not get a funeral plan and lock it in at today's prices? Not being morbid, just practical!