Attendance Allowance and Guaranteed Pension Credits

MsBlonde

whizzywoo said:

@MsBlonde it really would be helpful if you could answer all the questions asked by the experienced posters.  One or both of you receiving a disability benefit could potentially increase your Pension Credit.  

Help can only be given if all the facts are known.

In my own case receiving Attendance Allowance increased my Pension Credit claim by a significant amount but it does depend on various other factors.

I thought couples both had to be getting disability. My mother isn't claiming it. But it's a couple's claim for pension credits (she's under pension age since he's been claiming it before the rule changes in 2019).

poppy12345

MsBlonde said:

whizzywoo said:

@MsBlonde it really would be helpful if you could answer all the questions asked by the experienced posters.  One or both of you receiving a disability benefit could potentially increase your Pension Credit.  

Help can only be given if all the facts are known.

In my own case receiving Attendance Allowance increased my Pension Credit claim by a significant amount but it does depend on various other factors.

I thought couples both had to be getting disability. My mother isn't claiming it.

That applies to the Severe disability premium. Pension credit can be increased if your mum claims carers allowance, as advised earlier in the thread. If her state pension is more than £69.70/week then she can't be paid carers allowance but will have an underlying entitlement to it and a carers premium will be added to their pension credit.

To be a carer you do not have to give physical help to the person you care for, just being there for them in general for someone to talk to is enough. As they live together you'll be surprised at the amount of help she probably gives and doesn't even realise it.

calcotti

MsBlonde said: Thanks I will attempt to do that for him tomorrow, let's just hope they don't ask him questions like attendance allowance did to confirm it's him. He's not 100% so struggled. Them asking a partially blind man to read his sort code off of a statement without myself being able to help him wasnt a great experience 

If you ring and are with him you should be able to explain why you are ringing and they should then simply need to speak to him to confirm a few details to verify it's him and ask him to confirm that he's happy for you to speak on your behalf. They'll then carry on the conversation with you.

whizzywoo

MsBlonde said:

whizzywoo said:

@MsBlonde it really would be helpful if you could answer all the questions asked by the experienced posters.  One or both of you receiving a disability benefit could potentially increase your Pension Credit.  

Help can only be given if all the facts are known.

In my own case receiving Attendance Allowance increased my Pension Credit claim by a significant amount but it does depend on various other factors.

I thought couples both had to be getting disability. My mother isn't claiming it. But it's a couple's claim for pension credits (she's under pension age since he's been claiming it before the rule changes in 2019).

Prior to myself receiving AA my husband was receiving the Care Component of PIP.  I had an underlying entitlement to Carer's Allowance but didn't actually receive any money because I received the Full State Pension.

But because of the underlying entitlement I received an addition called Carer's Premium which increased the Pension Credit by £38.85 per week.

Now that I receive Attendance Allowance we also receive a Severe Disability Premium each as well as receiving the Carer's Premium.

As Poppy above says you don't have to give actual physical help to qualify as a Carer.  I do give some physical help to my husband but not much, it's mainly being there for him in case he falls or helping sort his medication and making sure he takes it correctly.  When you think about it, it's quite amazing how much help a person actually gives.

calcotti

whizzywoo said:

Prior to myself receiving AA my husband was receiving the Care Component of PIP.  I had an underlying entitlement to Carer's Allowance but didn't actually receive any money because I received the Full State Pension.

But because of the underlying entitlement I received an addition called Carer's Premium which increased the Pension Credit by £38.85 per week.

Now that I receive Attendance Allowance we also receive a Severe Disability Premium each as well as receiving the Carer's Premium.

If your husband is also pension age and receiving a State Pension he could, if applicable, claim Carer’s Allowance for looking after you. Like you, he wouldn’t be paid CA but would establish underlying entitlement and as a result the PC would then include a second carer premium.

whizzywoo

calcotti said:

whizzywoo said:

Prior to myself receiving AA my husband was receiving the Care Component of PIP.  I had an underlying entitlement to Carer's Allowance but didn't actually receive any money because I received the Full State Pension.

But because of the underlying entitlement I received an addition called Carer's Premium which increased the Pension Credit by £38.85 per week.

Now that I receive Attendance Allowance we also receive a Severe Disability Premium each as well as receiving the Carer's Premium.

If your husband is also pension age and receiving a State Pension he could, if applicable, claim Carer’s Allowance for looking after you. Like you, he wouldn’t be paid CA but would establish underlying entitlement and as a result the PC would then include a second carer premium.

Thanks for the advice @calcotti but he is not yet old enough to claim State Pension. 

We were lucky enough to be able to claim Pension Credit before the Mixed Age rules were introduced.  I was eligible for State Pension 8 days before the rules changed. 

So we will look into my husband claiming an underlying entitlement to Carer's Allowance and the Carer's Premium when he is 66.  It will depend on his health and how much he deteriorates over the next couple of years.  

Rubyroobs

whizzywoo said:

calcotti said:

whizzywoo said:

Prior to myself receiving AA my husband was receiving the Care Component of PIP.  I had an underlying entitlement to Carer's Allowance but didn't actually receive any money because I received the Full State Pension.

But because of the underlying entitlement I received an addition called Carer's Premium which increased the Pension Credit by £38.85 per week.

Now that I receive Attendance Allowance we also receive a Severe Disability Premium each as well as receiving the Carer's Premium.

If your husband is also pension age and receiving a State Pension he could, if applicable, claim Carer’s Allowance for looking after you. Like you, he wouldn’t be paid CA but would establish underlying entitlement and as a result the PC would then include a second carer premium.

Thanks for the advice @calcotti but he is not yet old enough to claim State Pension. 

We were lucky enough to be able to claim Pension Credit before the Mixed Age rules were introduced.  I was eligible for State Pension 8 days before the rules changed. 

So we will look into my husband claiming an underlying entitlement to Carer's Allowance and the Carer's Premium when he is 66.  It will depend on his health and how much he deteriorates over the next couple of years.  

He can claim carers allowance now if under state pension age and if he does not earn more than £132 a week. I think the carers allowance comes off the pension credit and a carers premium added.

whizzywoo

Rubyroobs said:

whizzywoo said:

calcotti said:

whizzywoo said:

Prior to myself receiving AA my husband was receiving the Care Component of PIP.  I had an underlying entitlement to Carer's Allowance but didn't actually receive any money because I received the Full State Pension.

But because of the underlying entitlement I received an addition called Carer's Premium which increased the Pension Credit by £38.85 per week.

Now that I receive Attendance Allowance we also receive a Severe Disability Premium each as well as receiving the Carer's Premium.

If your husband is also pension age and receiving a State Pension he could, if applicable, claim Carer’s Allowance for looking after you. Like you, he wouldn’t be paid CA but would establish underlying entitlement and as a result the PC would then include a second carer premium.

Thanks for the advice @calcotti but he is not yet old enough to claim State Pension. 

We were lucky enough to be able to claim Pension Credit before the Mixed Age rules were introduced.  I was eligible for State Pension 8 days before the rules changed. 

So we will look into my husband claiming an underlying entitlement to Carer's Allowance and the Carer's Premium when he is 66.  It will depend on his health and how much he deteriorates over the next couple of years.  

He can claim carers allowance now if under state pension age and if he does not earn more than £132 a week. I think the carers allowance comes off the pension credit and a carers premium added.

That's true but we would lose more than we would gain because we would lose the double SDP.

calcotti

Rubyroobs said:

whizzywoo said:

calcotti said:

whizzywoo said:

Prior to myself receiving AA my husband was receiving the Care Component of PIP.  I had an underlying entitlement to Carer's Allowance but didn't actually receive any money because I received the Full State Pension.

But because of the underlying entitlement I received an addition called Carer's Premium which increased the Pension Credit by £38.85 per week.

Now that I receive Attendance Allowance we also receive a Severe Disability Premium each as well as receiving the Carer's Premium.

If your husband is also pension age and receiving a State Pension he could, if applicable, claim Carer’s Allowance for looking after you. Like you, he wouldn’t be paid CA but would establish underlying entitlement and as a result the PC would then include a second carer premium.

Thanks for the advice @calcotti but he is not yet old enough to claim State Pension. 

We were lucky enough to be able to claim Pension Credit before the Mixed Age rules were introduced.  I was eligible for State Pension 8 days before the rules changed. 

So we will look into my husband claiming an underlying entitlement to Carer's Allowance and the Carer's Premium when he is 66.  It will depend on his health and how much he deteriorates over the next couple of years.  

He can claim carers allowance now if under state pension age and if he does not earn more than £132 a week. I think the carers allowance comes off the pension credit and a carers premium added.

I was very specific to only suggest claiming CA if husband is State Pension because receiving CA would result in loss of a SDP.

Whizzywoo, just to check - your husband doesn’t her contribution based ESA? From what I have read Ai understand that he doesn’t.

whizzywoo

calcotti said:

Rubyroobs said:

whizzywoo said:

calcotti said:

whizzywoo said:

Prior to myself receiving AA my husband was receiving the Care Component of PIP.  I had an underlying entitlement to Carer's Allowance but didn't actually receive any money because I received the Full State Pension.

But because of the underlying entitlement I received an addition called Carer's Premium which increased the Pension Credit by £38.85 per week.

Now that I receive Attendance Allowance we also receive a Severe Disability Premium each as well as receiving the Carer's Premium.

If your husband is also pension age and receiving a State Pension he could, if applicable, claim Carer’s Allowance for looking after you. Like you, he wouldn’t be paid CA but would establish underlying entitlement and as a result the PC would then include a second carer premium.

Thanks for the advice @calcotti but he is not yet old enough to claim State Pension. 

We were lucky enough to be able to claim Pension Credit before the Mixed Age rules were introduced.  I was eligible for State Pension 8 days before the rules changed. 

So we will look into my husband claiming an underlying entitlement to Carer's Allowance and the Carer's Premium when he is 66.  It will depend on his health and how much he deteriorates over the next couple of years.  

He can claim carers allowance now if under state pension age and if he does not earn more than £132 a week. I think the carers allowance comes off the pension credit and a carers premium added.

I was very specific to only suggest claiming CA if husband is State Pension because receiving CA would result in loss of a SDP.

Whizzywoo, just to check - your husband doesn’t her contribution based ESA? From what I have read Ai understand that he doesn’t.

No my husband doesn’t receive Contribution Based ESA anymore.

After he lost his Support Group status a few years ago it stopped after the 52 weeks were up.  He does continue to receive NI credits though towards his State Pension.  So he will get a full State Pension when the time comes. 

We'd always had to fight to tribunal to get the ESA support group but the final tribunal just about broke his spirit.  So I decided that I couldn't put him through it again.

I was ill by this time but working part time self employed.  We claimed Working Tax Credits with the disability bit for me and I managed to keep going until I hit State Pension age.