Benefits conundrum.....

maxmycardagain

So an ex-workmate contacted me, he is not tech savvy......

He and his wife are both losing thier part time jobs and he tried to calculate what, if any, benefits he might get

He tried once and got a figure then realised he claimed only as single

He tried again including his wife

The 2nd result was lower (as a couple) than the first.....

I have never claimed, so thought someone here could try?

He.......69
State pension £850 every 4 weeks

She .....63
No income

Rent £425/4 weeks
rates £1250 per annum

no other income/savings/etc

Both have fully paid up N.I.
Neither are disabled, both are seeking work
Both UK residents
i bedroom

TIA 

rosewalk

I would advise that they call the Help to Claim Service run by CAB on 0800 144 8 444. An adviser there will be able to run a benefits check. As well as checking if the couple could claim Universal Credit they will be able to look at whether she would be able to claim New Style Job Seekers Allowance.  

tacpot12

I've put the figures into the benefit calculator at EntitledTo.co.uk, and with a couple of assumptions, the result is: 

Universal Credit £157.18 per month
Council Tax Reduction £96.98 per month 

The main assumption is that they don't have more than £6,000 in savings. If they have more than this (but less than £16,000) they will receive a bit less (or possibly zero) Universal Credit. 

The other assumption is about the level of their Council Tax. The benefit calculator uses information about each local authority and Council Tax rates in their area, so if we don't have a full postcode (and you shouldn't put their full postcode on MSE to protect their identity), it can't workout exactly what the Council Tax Reduction amount will be, but it will be worth them claiming this from their local council; it's usually an online claim. They can claim Universal Credit online as well.

Spoonie_Turtle

It sounds like his results were probably correct.

As he is over state pension age, a calculation for just him would have been for Pension Credit and pension age Housing Benefit. 
Because his wife is under state pension age, a calculation including them both would have been for Universal Credit, which as he has evidently seen is much less generous than the pension age benefits.

maxmycardagain

Spoonie_Turtle said:

It sounds like his results were probably correct.

As he is over state pension age, a calculation for just him would have been for Pension Credit and pension age Housing Benefit. 
Because his wife is under state pension age, a calculation including them both would have been for Universal Credit, which as he has evidently seen is much less generous than the pension age benefits.

He alone wont get PC

maxmycardagain

So (according to the DWP/HMRC) ........2 can live as cheaply as 1, or cheaper

Rubyroobs

maxmycardagain said:

So (according to the DWP/HMRC) ........2 can live as cheaply as 1, or cheaper

Universal credit for a mixed age couple is significantly less generous than Pension credit top up for just him as a single person would be. If they claimed Universal credit his wife would need to consider also that she would be expected to look for full time work unless she has any health issues preventing her from doing so. 

maxmycardagain

run it thru Entitled to and....

I thought UC had superceeded JSA?

"New style Job Seeker's Allowance

£392.17 / monthly"

On the basis of the data entered you are not entitled to Universal Credit. We estimate your monthly Universal Credit award will be £0.00.

Muttleythefrog

maxmycardagain said:

run it thru Entitled to and....

I thought UC had superceeded JSA?

"New style Job Seeker's Allowance

£392.17 / monthly"

On the basis of the data entered you are not entitled to Universal Credit. We estimate your monthly Universal Credit award will be £0.00.

UC supersedes Income related JSA and ESA... but not contribution based so there is a 'new-style' JSA and ESA for new claims where someone meets criteria including for recent NI contributions

frayedknot

maxmycardagain said:

So (according to the DWP/HMRC) ........2 can live as cheaply as 1, or cheaper

Yes, it's not HMRC, it's the DWP and they hate mixed-age couples. If the wife is entitled to new style jobseekers due to her ni record they will be ok but it will only last 6 months. After that, if she can't find work they'd be better off divorcing!
Just joking, but it's a ridiculous state of affairs.

sammyjammy

frayedknot said:

maxmycardagain said:

So (according to the DWP/HMRC) ........2 can live as cheaply as 1, or cheaper

Yes, it's not HMRC, it's the DWP and they hate mixed-age couples. If the wife is entitled to new style jobseekers due to her ni record they will be ok but it will only last 6 months. After that, if she can't find work they'd be better off divorcing!
Just joking, but it's a ridiculous state of affairs.

Strong emotive language there.

IMO its right that mixed age couples claim UC if they need help from means tested benefits.  You could have a 10 year age difference in a couple, why should a healthy 57 year old get assistance from the state without the need to seek work?