ESA - Support Group

Rutty

Can someone help me please as I am confused over the ESA benefit as I understood that if you were in the support group it is non means tested.

My wife was in the support group for one year after which for the second year she was moved to the WRAG group. At the end of this period we appealed for her to be be put back in the support group. The appeal was successful and she is now in the support group.

She has also been awarded the higher level payment of £139.75 per week from a Personal Independence Payment and seems to have been awarded an amount of £54.71 from the ESA support group. It was my understanding that ESA paid about £109 per week and if you are in the support group is not means tested. However she does receive a former employers ill health pension of £97 per week. And we had £10K of savings. I also have a former employers pension and work on a casual basis 22.5 hours per week on average (min wage). Would the savings and my pension and casual work affect my wife's ESA and therefore reduce it from the £109 per week?

Torry_Quine

Rutty wrote: »

Can someone help me please as I am confused over the ESA benefit as I understood that if you were in the support group it is non means tested.

My wife was in the support group for one year after which for the second year she was moved to the WRAG group. At the end of this period we appealed for her to be be put back in the support group. The appeal was successful and she is now in the support group.

She has also been awarded the higher level payment of £139.75 per week from a Personal Independence Payment and seems to have been awarded an amount of £54.71 from the ESA support group. It was my understanding that ESA paid about £109 per week and if you are in the support group is not means tested. However she does receive a former employers ill health pension of £97 per week. And we had £10K of savings. I also have a former employers pension and work on a casual basis 22.5 hours per week on average (min wage). Would the savings and my pension and casual work affect my wife's ESA and therefore reduce it from the £109 per week?

ESA whether contributions or income based is decided on whether enough contributions have been paid and both can be support group.

Had she been paying her NI contributions prior to first claiming?

Rutty

Yes. She was credited in the first year of the support group and then in the second year when she was in WRAG, Before then she was ill but on sick pay from work therefore her NI contributions should have been paid..

midnight_express

Her benefit has been reduced because of her pension.

pmlindyloo

Rutty wrote: »

Can someone help me please as I am confused over the ESA benefit as I understood that if you were in the support group it is non means tested.

My wife was in the support group for one year after which for the second year she was moved to the WRAG group. At the end of this period we appealed for her to be be put back in the support group. The appeal was successful and she is now in the support group.

She has also been awarded the higher level payment of £139.75 per week from a Personal Independence Payment and seems to have been awarded an amount of £54.71 from the ESA support group. It was my understanding that ESA paid about £109 per week and if you are in the support group is not means tested. However she does receive a former employers ill health pension of £97 per week. And we had £10K of savings. I also have a former employers pension and work on a casual basis 22.5 hours per week on average (min wage). Would the savings and my pension and casual work affect my wife's ESA and therefore reduce it from the £109 per week?

If she is on contribution based ESA then she should be receiving £109.30 per week.

Her personal pension will affect this amount. The first £85 is disregarded and then half the remainder is deducted from her ESA.

As it is contribution based then anything you earn/have as income/ savings will not affect her award.

If you could print out what it says on the award letter then we might be able to help further.

TELLIT01

The first £85 of pension is disregarded and 50% of anything over that amount is also disgregarded. From the figures given the ESA payment should only have been reduced by £6, not from £109 to £57.
You need to give ESA a call to find out the details.