Confused and worried over what the increases will be in April

slowcars

I know that nobody has an inkling as to what the increases will be, if any, in April.
But it is worrying.
I get £38 a week Guaranteed Pension Credit and another £16 of Savings Pension Credit. Both of us are pensioners and between us we get approx. £320 a week in State Pensions. On top of that I receive Industrial Injury benefit of approx. £70 a week. Also, I receive my Civil Service pension of approx. £240 a month.

Assuming that there is no increase in Pension Credit allowances or other benefits and just the 10% on the State Pensions with an automatic 10% on the Civil Service pension the increases will amount to £320 + £60 x 10% = £38 increase.
Effectively these increases will wipe out my Guaranteed Pension Credit and without that the Savings Credit will go as well.
If that happens, we will no longer be entitled to any further COL payments as well as the automatic 100% Council Tax Support.

This all way round will mean that we will not see any financial increase, in fact we would be worse off. 
I cannot believe that this will happen. Is my thinking and calculations, correct?

All we can hope for is that they increase all of the Pension Credit allowances so that we don't benefit from the 10% uplift of the State Pensions but don't lose out either.
 
Thanks

calcotti

There has been no suggestion anywhere that I have seen that benefits could be frozen. The discussion has only been about whether benefits could be increased by CPI or by the rise in earnings. Even this is still just rumour.

We will likely know the answer by the end of the week.

poppy12345

slowcars said:

If that happens, we will no longer be entitled to any further COL payments

There's been no announcements of any further COL payments either. The last one will for those claiming PC will be by 23rd Nov which is for £324.

NedS

We will find out on Thursday, but my money is on the full 10.1% rise for benefits and state pensions, and having had the full inflationary increase there will be no further CoL payments next year.

slowcars

calcotti said:

There has been no suggestion anywhere that I have seen that benefits could be frozen. The discussion has only been about whether benefits could be increased by CPI or by the rise in earnings. Even this is still just rumour.

We will likely know the answer by the end of the week.

I know nothing has yet been said. But with the expected freeze of tax bands and personal tax allowances there is the possibility that welfare benefits apart from UC could well be frozen. I can't help but worry what could happen. It's not nice at our age to have this uncertainty. Personally, I would be quite happy not to see any rises of the State Pension as that is what could well be our downfall financially. What we get now would do us for another year without all of this messing about. 

calcotti

Reminder that this forum is to help people get their benefit entitlement not to discuss policy. 

It’s not nice to have uncertainty at any age.

Grumpelstiltskin

You have to admit your income is higher than many pensioners and what is the point of worrying about something no one knows if it will happen.

Rubyroobs

You can still get savings pension credit without getting pension credit guarantee. 
You are getting nearly £500 a week in benefits currently, even more if you taken not paying any council tax into consideration. And presumably no housing costs ?
I also don't think there will be any further col payments.
Have you looked at the criteria for Attendance allowance?

bigbill

I take it you & your partner both have either DLA Care middlle / high or AA as well as all the other incomes you have identified in your first post?

Spoonie_Turtle

Silvertabby said:

I keep seeing tabloid headlines about pensioners sitting in the cold, with just one candle for lighting, 

Incidentally, candles are far more expensive than running LED bulbs.  The media strangely never seem to mention that …

NedS

Spoonie_Turtle said:

Silvertabby said:

I keep seeing tabloid headlines about pensioners sitting in the cold, with just one candle for lighting, 

Incidentally, candles are far more expensive than running LED bulbs.  The media strangely never seem to mention that …

Indeed. It's not as evocative to show a pensioner huddling over an LED bulb for warmth though, and you know how the press are.