Carer's Allowance 'Irregular Earner'?

[Deleted User]

We got a letter this morning from the local council re. council rent. It's exactly the same figures as on yesterdays PC letter with the exception that the 'Carer's Allowance' for me @ £66.15 isn't mentioned anywhere and so the rent is still covered in full.

I don't know whether to laugh or cry at the ineptitude of the DWP (apologies to anyone who works for them who are on here but I can only speak from experience). I'll wait for Mondays post in the faint hope of some clarification and then give them a call presuming I've not just given up the will to live by then.

[Deleted User]

calcotti wrote: »

The Carer’s Allowance should always been included as income if you are receiving it. The carer addition is not applicable if Carer’s Allowance is not in payment.

You can check Pension Credit entitlement here https://www.gov.uk/pension-credit-calculator

Unfortunately if they have previously included the carer addition but not the Carer’s Allowance it is likely there has been an overpayment of Pension Credit. However, in the circumstances, I think this is official error which means that DWP cannot recover it (although they may try).

Do get help from local advice agency if you need it. It can be easier to advise with all paperwork available whereas advice on this forum relies on what you post and there may be bits of information you have missed.

I finally cracked and phoned the PC people yesterday as we'd had no further communication from them and they confirmed that they should have been including the CA award in their calculations (I had no doubt that you were right BTW).

General enquiries took one look and advised that I call 'Change of Circumstances', they couldn't confirm if they would try to recover any of the PC paid over the last 4 years as he had to pass it on to their line manager. I don't think we have anything to worry about as I was sending my wage slips to CA for the entire 4 years who had to pass it on to PC to work out any recoveries due. On every letter regarding the PC award over the 4 years they included the line regarding the amount that 'your partner receives for CA' so I can't see how they can claim that they weren't aware of the CA claim.

They did mention also that if they did try for a recovery then it may have knock on effects for housing benefit & community tax but the local council seem to ignore CA amounts anyway which is why I recently got a letter re. rent to say we're still getting the full amount paid so I don't think it would affect them anyway. I've also got to sort my dentist out now as I was exempt due to the PC award.

I'm a bit annoyed however that once again it appears that nothing further would have occurred without a phone call from myself to prompt them. I've had 4 years of this with CA payments so I shouldn't be surprised.

Now I've just got to wait (yet again) and see whether things are going to go very bad for us or whether they'll write it off as their error (the CA people have already admitted they messed up), the CA have put forward the amounts of underpayment for CA to PC to see if they should activate any recoveries on the amounts (around 4 figures I think).

I only brought this up with them in the first place (actually many, many times) to finally try to convince them that I was a regular earner. In that I was successful but the unintended consequences of them deciding to go back over the entire 4 years off their own bat is a bit frightening.

calcotti

Colin_Maybe wrote: »

They did mention also that if they did try for a recovery then it may have knock on effects for housing benefit & community tax but the local council seem to ignore CA amounts anyway which is why I recently got a letter re. rent to say we're still getting the full amount paid so I don't think it would affect them anyway.

Unfortunately it is not as simple as that.

HB and CTR are means tested and CA does fall to be treated as income taken into account when entitlement is calculated. However for a claimant in receipt of Pension Credit no calculation is required because PC automatically gives rise to full HB and CTR entitlement.

If your PC stops local authority will have to start calculating HB and CTR.

[Deleted User]

calcotti wrote: »

Unfortunately it is not as simple as that.

HB and CTR are means tested and CA does fall to be treated as income taken into account when entitlement is calculated. However for a claimant in receipt of Pension Credit no calculation is required because PC automatically gives rise to full HB and CTR entitlement.

If your PC stops local authority will have to start calculating HB and CTR.

They've already stopped the wifes PC which is why (I presume) we got the letter from the council re. rent discount in the first place. I've just checked their letter again and they mention the CP but not my carers (they did include the wifes PIP award which is ignored). I did run through an online checker from the council and included the CA but it still came back as us being eligible. I'll pop in next week to confirm either way.

[Deleted User]

calcotti wrote: »

Unfortunately it is not as simple as that.

HB and CTR are means tested and CA does fall to be treated as income taken into account when entitlement is calculated. However for a claimant in receipt of Pension Credit no calculation is required because PC automatically gives rise to full HB and CTR entitlement.

If your PC stops local authority will have to start calculating HB and CTR.

Popped into the local council office today and they've confirmed that CA is ignored for HB & CTR purposes (here at least), I just need to wait for the letter from the CA people confirming my change of circumstance and show it to them. I think they had me as having an underlying qualification for CA previously.

The letter re. rent that I got the day after the PC one was purely coincidental apparently and wouldn't have been triggered by anything the PC people do.

calcotti

Colin_Maybe wrote: »

Popped into the local council office today and they've confirmed that CA is ignored for HB & CTR purposes (here at least), I just need to wait for the letter from the CA people confirming my change of circumstance and show it to them.

I’m surprised by that. See, for example, https://www.carersuk.org/help-and-advice/financial-support/help-with-benefits/housing-benefit
“Most income you receive is taken into account, such as earnings (although some of your earnings will be disregarded), other benefits (including Carer’s Allowance) and tax credits; personal pensions etc. However some income is disregarded including: DLA; PIP; Attendance Allowance; Child Benefit and any Child Maintenance you receive.”

[Deleted User]

I finally got a letter of award from CA to show to the council although it took yet another call to actually get them to send one...

I'm still waiting for any further communication from the council.

The CA & PC people also finally got around to talking to each other and they've paid us for all of the missing weeks over the 4 year period (again, only after a couple of calls and then a further one when they didn't get a managers approval for the 4 figure sum to be paid)

The PC people aren't chasing anything up as they underpaid us for the weeks they did actually cough up any money so I've certainly not made any monetary gain. I have asked about them reviewing the payments they did make but don't think I stand a chance. Perhaps I should let sleeping dogs lie?

[Deleted User]

calcotti wrote: »

I’m surprised by that. See, for example, https://www.carersuk.org/help-and-advice/financial-support/help-with-benefits/housing-benefit
“Most income you receive is taken into account, such as earnings (although some of your earnings will be disregarded), other benefits (including Carer’s Allowance) and tax credits; personal pensions etc. However some income is disregarded including: DLA; PIP; Attendance Allowance; Child Benefit and any Child Maintenance you receive.”

A final update on this (hopefully). It appears you know more about the subject than my local council as it does indeed affect Housing Benefit and Council Tax. We are just over the limit on earnings so have to pay a very small contribution weekly for rent and I had to pay a few quid to top up what we'd paid in a lump sum back in April for the council tax.

Thanks for your help.

calcotti

Thanks for the update, Colin.

[Deleted User]

I forgot to mention that the update is only just now as that's how long it's taken the local council to come back to us. 2 full months...