Pensions Credit Advice needed

quattros

Hi all need some advice for my Parents
My Dad is 72 and currently claiming state pension
My Mum is 66 and not yet claiming her pension .
We heard about pensions credit and would my parents be eligible to it
My mum is Disabled and gets some DLA,
I believe there is some criteria for my parents to get the Pensions Credit , I read something about savings if you have any have to be under 10k each person ?

Any help and advice appreciated.

molerat

https://www.gov.uk/pension-credit

Silvertabby

Why hasn't your mum claimed her State pension yet? I'm fairly sure that she won't be able to claim means tested benefits if she has deferred payment of her pension (usually in order to receive a higher pension later).

quattros

Hi thanks for you reply unfortunately we just have not got round to do it as she is in and out of hospital and time does not permit , so I am trying to now sort it for them ,
My Dad does claim his state pension but reading on the Gov site I dont think he can back date the Pensions credit payment if eligible before 3 months
My dad reached pension age before April 2016 .

lisyloo

Do they qualify on an income basis?
Pension credit is for people that do t have enough to live on.
We can’t tell without the detail, but I would have thought that if they didn’t have enough to live on then claiming the state pension would be a priority ???
If they have enough income and assets then they won’t qualify.
Have you checked that?

Silvertabby

In that case, the first thing to do will be to claim your mum's State pension and then see if they (as a household) qualify for pension credit.

See molerat's link - or speak to the CAB. Their benefits advisors are usually pretty clued up.

quattros

Both my parents have some savings but not a lot under 10k each
My mum gets PIP and SDA
My Dad does have a personal pension which he is not yet claiming
They live in the own owned home ,
From what I gather if they have their own home it does not count as assets as extra homes etc but not sure if PIP and SDA effects as an Income?

lisyloo wrote: »

Do they qualify on an income basis?
Pension credit is for people that do t have enough to live on.
We can’t tell without the detail, but I would have thought that if they didn’t have enough to live on then claiming the state pension would be a priority ???
If they have enough income and assets then they won’t qualify.
Have you checked that?

Silvertabby

quattros wrote: »

Both my parents have some savings but not a lot under 10k each
My mum gets PIP and SDA
My Dad does have a personal pension which he is not yet claiming
They live in the own owned home ,
From what I gather if they have their own home it does not count as assets as extra homes etc but not sure if PIP and SDA effects as an Income?

The savings limit is per household, not per person.

Why hasn't your dad claimed his personal pension yet? Again, I doubt that he/they would qualify for means tested benefits when he has an unclaimed pension.

If they are struggling for money, then their priorities should be claiming your mum's State pension and your dad's personal pension and then look at pension credit. If they then qualify, which is by no means guaranteed.

NedS

If eligible, pension credit will top up income of a couple to £255.25 per week, so their income must be less than £255.25/week

If your mother is of state pension age then she must claim her state pension first. When looking at any claim for pension credit, they will assume that she is in receipt of her state pension even if she is not.

If your mum is not of state pension age (i.e, still of working age), then both your parents would need to claim universal credit until both are of state pension age.

Disability benefits (e.g, PIP, SDA) are ignored when considering income for income-based benefits.

quattros

I see ok I am thinking they may not get it as the they have clise to 10k each in their accounts

I have been helping them out money for some time , I don't get much time due to work commitments last time, I am now trying to go through the paperwork etc on how much my dads personal pension is worth, I don't think it is very much .

Silvertabby wrote: »

The savings limit is per household, not per person.

Why hasn't your dad claimed his personal pension yet? Again, I doubt that he/they would qualify for means tested benefits when he has an unclaimed pension.

If they are struggling for money, then their priorities should be claiming your mum's State pension and your dad's personal pension and then look at pension credit. If they then qualify, which is by no means guaranteed.

xylophone

Pension Credit is a means tested benefit. Household income is taken into consideration.

This is a comprehensive explanation - you will need to read carefully. It covers the effect of your mother's disability benefits on the appropriate minimum guarantee

https://www.ageuk.org.uk/globalassets/age-uk/documents/factsheets/fs48_pension_credit_fcs.pdf

Your father is over PC age and so his private pension will be taken into account when any claim for PC is considered.

See https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pension-freedoms-and-dwp-benefits/pension-freedoms-and-dwp-benefits

Your mother needs to claim her SP.

https://www.gov.uk/new-state-pension/how-to-claim