Pensioner letting single pregnant and sick daughter live in house , can she claim benefits ???

Dookdik17095

I am 66   and father of a 25 year old daughter she is pregnant and also has many health problems , she had to stop work due to the health issues  not related to pregnancy.  her boyfriend has  disappeared .

I have let her come to live with me otherwise she would be homeless

What benefits  can she expect ?

I am currently paying all the bills ,and food  she is costing me  about £400 a month   can I charge her rent  and can she get HB  

I am very worried as im only a pensioner  , and helping my daughter  is important

Rubyroobs

Your daughter can claim Universal credit. If she is too sick to work then she needs to hand in sick notes to UC and wait to be assessed for work capability. Once her baby is born she will get extra money for the baby and won't have any work commitments. Universal credit won't pay any help as she is living with family. If you currently receive the single occupancy discount on your council tax then you need to inform them that she is living with you if you haven't already done so. Your daughters UC payment will help towards what she is costing you.
Alternatively for now she could claim New style ESA if she has paid sufficient NI contributions over the past 2-3 years. the assessment rate of this would pay a similar amount to the basic of UC she will receive. She would still however need to make a Uc claim to get help when her child is born, so may be easier to just claim UC, or claim them both together but ESA is deducted from Uc in full. Sorry to say until the baby is born she won't get much.
She should also look at claiming the sure start maternity grant when the baby is born.

poppy12345

You can charge her rent but she will not be able to claim for help with any rent when living with you. Are you renting your home? if so are you claiming a disability benefit yourself such as PIP/ADP daily living, DLA care or AA?

If you're claiming single person discount for council tax you will lose that.

She can claim Universal Credit unless she has capital of more than £16,000 and then she will be excluded. If entitled she should report her health condition and provide a fit note. This will then start the work capability assessment process off. 

If she's worked in the previous 2 tax years she will be able to claim New style ESA. It isn't means tested so savings/capital will not affect the amount she's entitled to. If she claims this as well as UC then the ESA will be deducted in full. She will need a fit note to claim this. 

Dookdik17095

I own the home , i am registered disabled  and get DLA  Motobility component and state pension

she is currently not required  by DWP to work  due to health issues and pregnancy  she is getting some UC   I believe its about £500 a month?.

seems I wont be able to charge her rent ,

also she has debts of  £4500  that need sorting out ,,,

She is actually lucky to get pregnant as she has polycistic  ovary syndrome  and other health  issues . She was a horse trainer and coach .

 she was told by Doctors when she was 18 that its highly unlikely she would be able to have  children  and she also had a coil . So  abortion was a non starter as this may be her only chance of a child .

Thank you for your comments , much appreciated

Brie

Can't help with some of the questions but is she aware that once she has a pregnancy certificate (or whatever it is called) from her midwife she can get free prescriptions.  She may also be eligible for milk and food vouchers under the healthy start programme.  I suspect the midwife will know all about that as well.

As for the debts....Citizen's Advice, NationalDebtline, StepChange, CommunityMoneyAdvice (CMA) should be able to help with those.  Or she can log on to MSE and go to the Debt Free forum to fill out a statement of accounts (SOA) and see what advice is offered there.    

poppy12345

Just because she can’t claim for help with the rent, doesn’t mean you can’t ask for a contribution towards the cost of the bills. 

sheramber

You can charge her for her keep- it would not be rent- such as  money towards the increase in utility bills and the increase in your council tax as you are no longer due a single occupancy discount.

She should pay for her own food or again pay towards your increase food bill.

That is what her UC should be used for. 

Whether she has enough money to cover all her outgoings is another matter.

Dookdik17095

Thanks   for all advice ,, she does contribute   .She wants to work again  when the child is  a few years old  .we shall see????