Will ESA be lost with a temporary lump sum hitting my account?

baza52

you are missing the point here.

The CC is either paid in full or the equivalent is left in the account as capital.
The capital will take the OPs mother in law over the threshold for income based benefits so this money WILL be used for living expenses.

IF the CC is paid and the DM deems this DOC then they will be in the same position as above (having to pay for their living expenses)

IF the DM says its ok to pay the CC or as in my case a DM was not involved then the OP's MIL will be debt free and have her living expenses covered by benefits.

You also fail to comment on the first post when the OP says "We've tried contacting all the usual suspects but even the government says they can't pre-judge this case, and she'll have to go ahead with it and cross her fingers"

So the DWP have basically told them the same as I am saying they should do.

GirlFromMars_2

baza52 wrote: »

So basically you write and ask for confirmation as one decision maker might agree its ok and another will say no.

What's to say the DM you ask will say no you cannot pay it but IF you do pay the DM that looks at what you spent your money on says its OK?

Because once a DC decision has been made in writing, that's the decision. And if you don't want to risk a notional capital decision, then at least you will know before you make a decision that screws up your finances. If the Decision Maker says to pay off the debts, then they don't have to worry about what happens next.

My original quote to PAY THE CC still stands.
If they do not pay the CC off they will spend the equivalent on rent and everything else their benefits would normally cover.
If the DO pay it AND the DM says they are treating them as still having the capital then the worst case scenario is that the you end up with a CC debt the same size as you originally had.

IF on the other hand the DM says it was ok to pay the CC off you end up without a debt over your head and your benefits continue to be paid.

Its a no brainer.....

Sure, with a credit card debt, a Notional Capital decision would work as you suggest. Assuming they don't suspend the claim while they're investigating. But writing now would avoid the worry of notional capital at all. And the Decision Maker could also put into writing all of the other spending the OPs mother has planned.

The OP says they've already asked and been told the DWP can't make an advance decision, so they obviously want a decision. The OP just hasn't asked the right person. When I phoned up an asked about a DoC decision I was told by the call centre that it wasn't possible, luckily a supervisor intervened and gave me the correct advice which was to write to the regional benefits office for a decision. Sure maybe I'd have risked paying off a few thousand pounds in Credit Card Debt, but I was asking about spending £70K on a house, certainly not an amount I could have dealt with as notional capital.

They can choose to risk it, or get a decision. But that's their choice, so maybe giving the options is the way to go, instead of advocating they risk it.

missbiggles1

baza52 wrote: »

So basically you write and ask for confirmation as one decision maker might agree its ok and another will say no.

What's to say the DM you ask will say no you cannot pay it but IF you do pay the DM that looks at what you spent your money on says its OK?


My original quote to PAY THE CC still stands.
If they do not pay the CC off they will spend the equivalent on rent and everything else their benefits would normally cover.
If the DO pay it AND the DM says they are treating them as still having the capital then the worst case scenario is that the you end up with a CC debt the same size as you originally had.

IF on the other hand the DM says it was ok to pay the CC off you end up without a debt over your head and your benefits continue to be paid.

Its a no brainer.....

And what happens when the CC company notices you've paid off your debt and takes the opportunity to close your account or drop your credit level drastically, as frequently happens - what do you live on then?

baza52

So what happens if the write to a DM and get a reply saying no you cannot pay it and they don't.
There is also a chance that if they did not get a decision and just paid it it would not be questioned and then they have lost out.

As for a CC dropping their limit I agree its possible but if that were the case I am sure a new CC provider would extend them credit as they have successfully paid their last bill in full and settled the account.

Lets also not overlook the OPs MIL will still have 6K in the bank they could use if the SHTF

I may be wrong but a lot of posts here come across as though they DONT want the ops MIL to benefit by clearing the card and are offering up all kinds of scenarios as to why they should not risk paying it.

Ames

No - we just think that when you're risking severe financial hardship it's best to be over cautious.

baza52

Ames wrote: »

No - we just think that when you're risking severe financial hardship it's best to be over cautious.

With 6K in the bank? Seriously

missbiggles1

baza52 wrote: »

So what happens if the write to a DM and get a reply saying no you cannot pay it and they don't.
There is also a chance that if they did not get a decision and just paid it it would not be questioned and then they have lost out.

As for a CC dropping their limit I agree its possible but if that were the case I am sure a new CC provider would extend them credit as they have successfully paid their last bill in full and settled the account.

Lets also not overlook the OPs MIL will still have 6K in the bank they could use if the SHTF

I may be wrong but a lot of posts here come across as though they DONT want the ops MIL to benefit by clearing the card and are offering up all kinds of scenarios as to why they should not risk paying it.

Because, of course, credit card companies are queuing up to offer credit to benefit claimants, aren't they?:rotfl:

baza52

missbiggles1 wrote: »

Because, of course, credit card companies are queuing up to offer credit to benefit claimants, aren't they?:rotfl:

:rotfl: hello....... They will still have six THOUSAND pounds to live off.
Not to mention they would NOT be in receipt of benefits would they lol

I have a credit card and am on benefits.
My credit limit was not dropped after I paid it off either.

missbiggles1

baza52 wrote: »

:rotfl: hello....... They will still have six THOUSAND pounds to live off.
Not to mention they would NOT be in receipt of benefits would they lol

I have a credit card and am on benefits.
My credit limit was not dropped after I paid it off either.

Plenty of people on benefits have credit cards - not so many people apply for one successfully when they're already on benefits. Also, the £6k won't last for long if you're considered to still have far more than that amount in the bank because of the deprivation issue.

baza52

missbiggles1 wrote: »

Plenty of people on benefits have credit cards - not so many people apply for one successfully when they're already on benefits. Also, the £6k won't last for long if you're considered to still have far more than that amount in the bank because of the deprivation issue.

They have said in the first post that 10k would clear a loan and the CC debt.
paying 6k off the CC would leave them no worse off than not paying it and having to spend 6K in capital to live off would it.
Have you actually read anything I have posted?

IF a DM deemed them to still have that 6k they could use their 6k left in the bank to live off and be NO worse off than they are now.
If they DONT pay it they will have to live off the money and still have 6k of debt