Long term sickness at 64

kensiko

Hello all

I am helping a relative as they are struggling with their health which is getting worse but they are still working after their state pension was delayed a few years ago.

They currently work 16 hours per week and receive working tax credits. They have recently got a fit note and are on SSP. Unfortunately their health has got worse and are currently in hospital and I cannot see them going back to work again before retiring at 66 (2 years).

Is it better to claim 28 weeks worth of SSP + working tax credits and apply for ESA after that?
I don't know if you should advise an employer that you believe you would be no longer working after 28 weeks SSP when you are aware.

They would obviously like to keep their tax credits while they can but then I noticed on this page https://www.turn2us.org.uk/Benefit-guides/Going-into-Hospital-and-benefits/Statutory-Sick-Pay-and-Working-Tax-Credit the statement "You may also get Working Tax Credit in addition to SSP or Employment and Support Allowance for the first 28 weeks if your income and savings are low." I thought you could only get working tax credits if working (or are getting SSP) and not if you are receiving ESA?

Just as an added detail they are currently waiting on a PIP tribunal (almost a year now) as I believe they are entitled to mobility enhanced, especially with the recent developments in their health.

Thanks all for reading and I appreciate any help!

poppy12345

They won't be able to claim New style ESA until the SSP has ended. They will be able to apply 1 month before it ends but they will need the SSP1 form from their employer and a fit note before they can do this.



They can't be paid ESA and SSP at the same time. Others will see this and give further advice, i'm sure.



Please be aware that the Tribunal will not take into consideration any worsening of condition since the original decision was made.

kensiko

Thanks very much for the first advice poppy :beer:

I wasn't meaning claiming SSP and ESA at the same time, I probably wasn't clear enough sorry.

I was wondering if it was best to carry on claiming SSP for 28 weeks then claiming ESA via the SSP1 form. Or to 'quit the job' and just start a claim for ESA immediately when I noticed tax credits may also be claimed as well which I wasn't aware of until I read the link on the original post.

Thanks for the info regarding the tribunal as well, I thought any new information would be taken into account as we wouldn't want to start that horrible process again!

Thanks again.

poppy12345

SSP is always payable for 28 weeks before you can claim ESA and it's never advisable to quite your job before getting the correct advice.



The Tribunal will take into consideration new evidence if it relates to how they were when the decision was made but not a worsening of condition.

kensiko

Perfect!

Superb advice, as always.

Much appreciated.

calcotti

You can get Working Tax Credits for 28 weeks while getting SSP or ESA but not for 28 weeks on SSP and then 28 weeks on ESA. In most cases this means employed people get Working Tax Credits alongside SSP while self employed people get it alongside ESA. Also employed people who had income too low to get SSP could get WTC alongside ESA.

The tribunal is to decide whether the PIP decision was correct at the time the decision was made. Unfortunately if the condition has worsened and you think there may be a higher entitlement as a result it will be necessary to start the whole "horrible process" again. Does friend have any PIP award at the moment?

Note that if friend has no other income (or very little) and savings are below £16,000 they can claim Universal Credit as well as or instead of ESA. Any ESA will be deducted from the UC award. A claim for UC would end any Tax Credits award so may want to delay claiming UC until WTC entitlement comes to an end anyway. Without doing full benefit calculation it is not possible to say which is likely to be more advantageous financially. He may want to ask local Citizens Advice for a benefits check.

kensiko

Thanks for the SSP/ESA confirmation. It does seem to make sense to carry on for now and claim 28 weeks SSP + working tax credit. At which point then look into ESA/UC (as you have also mentioned).

They have never had any PIP at all and only applied for this in 2018. Since then they have also been declined via MR. I hope the tribunal will change the decision, but that is an unknown for now.

A benefits check is probably a good idea to see what the best entitlement is. They should be able to claim UC after 28 week SSP is completed as they have no savings and a low income (or none at that point!). I wasn't sure the difference between applying for ESA and applying for UC was and which is 'best'?

calcotti

They can claim UC while getting SSP but this would end the Tax Credits.

Ideally friend needs calculations to compare different incomes at different points depending on what he does. He is going to need to be prepared for fluctuating income.

Does he own or rent his home? If renting then he should bear in mind that UC will include help with the rent.

kensiko

I have started a little spreadsheet to try to understand the income depending on what decisions are made.

They own their own home.

pmlindyloo

Your friend may be eligible for new style ESA (the old contribution based ESA).

This is separate from UC.

Has your friend been working and paying class 1 NI contributions for the last few years?

Since your friend has no housing costs then there may be no need to claim Universal Credit, just the new style ESA.

kensiko

I think they are eligible for both, I have only just started looking at UC after advice from posts above, I thought it would always be ESA they would be applying for.

They have always worked so should have full NI for last few years.