UC Single to Joint Claim, advice regarding single payment due

MerryWidow22

Was widowed early this year and had help setting up a UC single claim. My regular payment is due in a few days but my lovely new partner moved in yesterday, so we reported this change of circumstances online today and joined our 2 separate single claims together with a code the UC site created. My account created the code for my partner to join and I know this has been successful as it’s given a list of things for us both to fill in, with both of our names visible on separate log ins.

I now have no access to the information from my original claim but I just wondered if anybody had experience of joining 2 single UC claims into a joint one  and could tell me whether my expected single payment will still come through in a few days? It’s now making me anxious as my rent will need paying for the month out of the payment I’m expecting - but it felt disingenuous not reporting the change online straight away (even waiting a few days felt wrong!)

I didn’t have UC before being widowed so have no experience of these things? 

My original payment should be due in the next few days and a payment statement has been issued, but will the new joint claim stop this from actually happening? The new joint claim start date is already into the next assessment phase/month (if that makes sense?) so my understanding is that it shouldn’t interfere with the analysis of income until the following month? But I don’t know if turning to a joint claim automatically stops money being paid out from the original single claim?

Thank you for any wisdom! 

calcotti

Your monthly payment is based on your circumstances at the end of the last day of the monthly UC period. Your next payment therefore depends on what date your UC period ended and when you said the change started from.

MerryWidow22

calcotti said:

Your monthly payment is based on your circumstances at the end of the last day of the monthly UC period. Your next payment therefore depends on what date your UC period ended and when you said the change started from.

Sorry if this sounds really dense! So the payment due in a few days (from last month’s assessment periods as a single claimant) should still be paid then? 

 

Spoonie_Turtle

On your statement it will show you the dates the payment is for.  Did you report the change before or after the end date of the assessment period?

calcotti

MerryWidow22 said:

calcotti said:

Your monthly payment is based on your circumstances at the end of the last day of the monthly UC period. Your next payment therefore depends on what date your UC period ended and when you said the change started from.

Sorry if this sounds really dense! So the payment due in a few days (from last month’s assessment periods as a single claimant) should still be paid then? 

As I said, it depends on whether or not the change you reported occurred before the end of the statement period,

MerryWidow22

Spoonie_Turtle said:

On your statement it will show you the dates the payment is for.  Did you report the change before or after the end date of the assessment period?

The single claimant statement was issued a couple of days ago and showed a payment is due towards the end of this week, but the joint claim was then made today which has removed the single claimant payment statement from my account. 

So the new change was definitely reported after the end date of the assessment period (for last month) but all of the original information, payment schedules and journal entries made as a single claimant have disappeared for my account entirely, which is why I’m questioning whether the payment will arrive at the end of the week or not. 

I just wondered if anybody else had changed to a joint claim shortly before a single claimant payment was due and whether it delayed it or anything? 

 I suppose I could have waited till the end of the week to report the change - just to make sure the final single claimant payment came through, but the thought of not reporting we were a couple within a day of my partner moving in made me panic! 

NedS

My understanding is that one person has joined the claim of another, so the original AP end date for the claim that has been "joined" will be the one that is retained.

I think if you reported the change and generated the code to give to your partner, because they moved in with you, then the original AP of your claim will be retained. The partner's claim joins your claim as a joint claim, and "their" AP is the one that will "move" to align with yours (that's technically not correct but I can't think of a better way to get across the point)

Simple answer is to post on your journal and ask for confirmation of your AP dates now the claim is a joint claim.

calcotti

MerryWidow22 said:

Spoonie_Turtle said:

On your statement it will show you the dates the payment is for.  Did you report the change before or after the end date of the assessment period?

The single claimant statement was issued a couple of days ago and showed a payment is due towards the end of this week, but the joint claim was then made today which has removed the single claimant payment statement from my account. 

So your payment should be paid as shown on the statement.

Spoonie_Turtle

Just for future reference, you might want to keep a copy of statements, letters, any important info in your journal (download or take a screenshot) so that you have a record no matter what happens with your claim.

samanthawatson92

I know this is an old thread but do you remember the outcome as this has just happened to me and I feel sick with worry