Denied access to Universal Credit because of where I live

Starsphinx

OK I know this is an odd direction to come at things from but..

I am currently head of a household made up of myself, my partner, a 17 year old in full time education, a 20 year old in full time work, and a lodger (niece) which is on occasions joined by a 21 year old in full time employment.

At the moment I am claiming ESA and am in the support group. This means I also have child tax credits and housing benefit. My health condition is variable and unpredictable and about a quarter of the time I need to be cared for by someone.

There are financial issues arising from this situation. My partner cannot get employment because of needing to be available to care for me at short notice. If my partner goes self employed when I am well enough it means having to end claims and make new ones when I get bad again which I know from experience is financial Armageddon because of the time taken to process each claim - and then process the housing benefit bit as well which is on a totally different schedule. We have no savings to cushion us through non working times. My son is having to pay 3/4 of the rent on our home because of housing benefit rules while I can only ask the lodger for £20 a week because of ESA rules. My eldest sons stays affect housing benefit further.

I have investigated Universal Credit - and under that I would be able to ask the lodger for equal rent to my son, (he would pay less she would pay more), my elder sons stays would not cause problems and my partner would be able to start and stop work as my health fluctuated. Over the course of a year we would take less money from the system and yet be better off ourselves - over time we might be able to build up enough savings to live on when I am bad so we did not need to claim at all.

One problem - I live in the wrong place. If I lived 10 miles further west we would be in an area allowing full Universal Credit claims - money would be easier and fairer and we would be better off. However where I live we are looking at 2 years before UC is fully available.

Is it actually legal for the government to deny my family the choices and options to improve our situation that are open to others?

PS please do not tell me to move house - I have enough problems as it is lol

CIS

Is it actually legal for the government to deny my family the choices and options to improve our situation that are open to others?

Legislation allows it to apply only to certain designated areas , a 'relevant district'. The 'relevant district' requirement is specified as being one of the necessary requirements which must be met in order to actually claim.

Craig

Icequeen99

Starsphinx wrote: »

OK I know this is an odd direction to come at things from but..

I am currently head of a household made up of myself, my partner, a 17 year old in full time education, a 20 year old in full time work, and a lodger (niece) which is on occasions joined by a 21 year old in full time employment.

At the moment I am claiming ESA and am in the support group. This means I also have child tax credits and housing benefit. My health condition is variable and unpredictable and about a quarter of the time I need to be cared for by someone.

There are financial issues arising from this situation. My partner cannot get employment because of needing to be available to care for me at short notice. If my partner goes self employed when I am well enough it means having to end claims and make new ones when I get bad again which I know from experience is financial Armageddon because of the time taken to process each claim - and then process the housing benefit bit as well which is on a totally different schedule. We have no savings to cushion us through non working times. My son is having to pay 3/4 of the rent on our home because of housing benefit rules while I can only ask the lodger for £20 a week because of ESA rules. My eldest sons stays affect housing benefit further.

I have investigated Universal Credit - and under that I would be able to ask the lodger for equal rent to my son, (he would pay less she would pay more), my elder sons stays would not cause problems and my partner would be able to start and stop work as my health fluctuated. Over the course of a year we would take less money from the system and yet be better off ourselves - over time we might be able to build up enough savings to live on when I am bad so we did not need to claim at all.

One problem - I live in the wrong place. If I lived 10 miles further west we would be in an area allowing full Universal Credit claims - money would be easier and fairer and we would be better off. However where I live we are looking at 2 years before UC is fully available.

Is it actually legal for the government to deny my family the choices and options to improve our situation that are open to others?

PS please do not tell me to move house - I have enough problems as it is lol

I don't think there is anything you can do about the postcodes and the roll-out.

However, i would get some advice to make sure 100% you would be better off on UC.

What is your partner doing when she isn't working? Would she be claiming carer's allowance when looking after you?

IQ

Sambella

Strictly speaking you could in theory charge the lodger more but anything over £20 affects your benefit entitlement?

This will be the same under UC really ?

Starsphinx

My partner does not claim carers allowance because it is next to impossible to provide the proof of 35 hours a week seeing as my condition varies so some weeks I dont need help. It is recognized that he is needed in that there is no requirement for him to look for or take up work himself (yes we are a back to front family in that I was the breadwinner and therefore the claim is in my name and he is dependent).

We would definitely be better off under UC - quite beside him being able to actually earn money the current rules are ridiculous.

ESA rules that my adult childrens income is disregarded but that any other income over £20 is stopped pound for pound out of the benefit.

Housing benefit rules that income accepted under ESA is disregarded but that my adult childrens income is accounted for in calculating benefit amounts.

With both my working sons here I get no housing benefit (£126 a week rent) and they are expected to pay £63 a week. With only one here the deduction is £82. In a logical world with both here they would each pay £42 a week and the lodger pays £42 a week which covers the rent and I still get full ESA. However what actually happens is if I charge the lodger £42 my ESA goes down by £22. Or if there is only one son and I charge the lodger £63 and my son £63 ESA goes down by £43.

Ideally I would like to say to both sons and the lodger OK £50 each and just have ESA which would keep me roughly the same as I am now (because I am getting the £20 on top of ESA) but what would actually happen is ESA would say I had income so stop paying and housing benefit would say I had non dependants so they would stop housing benefit as well - I cannot claim housing benefit to live off the rent income I cannot use the rent income to pay the rent and live off ESA - the income gets counted twice. With UC it would get counted once so every ones rent would be fair (not one person paying £20 and one paying £82) and I would have an income to live on.

I feel so stuck at the moment - my OH could be earning but cant because that would mean ending the claim and then having to make another one in a few weeks which would take more weeks to sort out during which time we would have no money. I am having to ask my son for way more money than the lodger pays - and when his brother is here they pay the whole rent between them but have no rights on the house or tenancy.

How can it be right for one family to be able to take work and ask equal payments without loosing half their income while another family in the same situation is stuck with no options?

baza52

why are only your sons paying rent?
YOU should be contributing as well from your benefits and wages.

nannytone_2

your wife doesn't need proof to claim carers allowancwe.

she would merely need to meet the criteria of giving care ( you would be the one to say she does or doesn't) and for you to be receiving the relevant disability benefit ( mid or high care DLA or either rate of PIP care)

if you receive either of these benefits there would be no non dependant deductions from either housing benefit or council tax support.

so the question is, do you receive DLA or PIP?

sammyjammy

It sounds from your post that your ESA is contributory which doesn't come under UC anyway.

Ames

nannytone wrote: »

your wife doesn't need proof to claim carers allowancwe.

she would merely need to meet the criteria of giving care ( you would be the one to say she does or doesn't) and for you to be receiving the relevant disability benefit ( mid or high care DLA or either rate of PIP care)

if you receive either of these benefits there would be no non dependant deductions from either housing benefit or council tax support.

so the question is, do you receive DLA or PIP?

The op said that she doesn't do 35 hours of care every week though.

nannytone_2

Ames wrote: »

The op said that she doesn't do 35 hours of care every week though.

no they didn't.

they said it was near on impossible to provide proof of the number of hours care is given.

i pointed out that they wont ask for proof other than the OP confirming the hours of care provided

NYM

The OP is female

....we are a back to front family in that I was the breadwinner and therefore the claim is in my name and he is dependent