help needed please on benefit question

rosiebell_3

hi
i have been claiming income support for the last 4 years and have just been told i should'nt have been on this benefit at all, i had to leave work 4 years ago to care for my mum, and was put on income support, tried to claim carer's allowance but was turned down as mum can still do most things for herself, now it seems i should,nt have been getting income support all this time, if i had been told that if i did'nt get the carer's allowance i should of gone back to the benefits office 4 years ago i would have done that, now it seems i should have been on job seekers allowance all this time, my money was stopped on friday and my rent and council tax, i am very worried as the lady i spoke to on the phone said i would have to pay the 4 years benefit back, as i wasn't entitled to it, and would probably have to go on job seekers meanwhile i still need to care for my mum.

any help or advice would be very much appreciated, thank you

terryw

rosiebell wrote: »

hi
i have been claiming income support for the last 4 years and have just been told i should'nt have been on this benefit at all, i had to leave work 4 years ago to care for my mum, and was put on income support, tried to claim carer's allowance but was turned down as mum can still do most things for herself, now it seems i should,nt have been getting income support all this time, if i had been told that if i did'nt get the carer's allowance i should of gone back to the benefits office 4 years ago i would have done that, now it seems i should have been on job seekers allowance all this time, my money was stopped on friday and my rent and council tax, i am very worried as the lady i spoke to on the phone said i would have to pay the 4 years benefit back, as i wasn't entitled to it, and would probably have to go on job seekers meanwhile i still need to care for my mum.

any help or advice would be very much appreciated, thank you

Looks like a case of "official error". You gave the facts and the authorities paid you on the strength of these facts. They have made the error and are unlikely to claim it back. Even if you were not entitled to IS you would have been entitled to JSA in any case. If the money is claimed back appeal quoting official error. CAB will assist in filling forms in. HB is unlikely to be affected as this is means tested regardless of the source of the income.

For the future, make a claim NOW for JSA and HB. Don't delay as HB is only paid from the Monday after the claim is made.

bw

terryw

lil_me

Get in touch with your local Welfare Rights/CAB office on Monday. The rates for IS are the same as for JSA and at a guess because you'd have still been entitled to JSA you shouldn't really have to pay it back. As long as you were not receiving the carer premium, if you were you may need to pay that back. As terryw has said with this being an official error you may not need to pay anything back regardless. As said get the forms in for the JSA and the HB asap.

Does your Mother claim DLA? To qualify for Carers Allowance she needs to receive middle rate DLA or higher for you to claim for looking after her.

rosiebell_3

hi, thank you both for your help, and no my mum doesn't get any carer's allowance at all, and i never recieved anything for her, was just getting the income support.

once again thank you

Fran

rosiebell,

If you are having to care for your mum more than before you could try putting in a claim for Carer's Allowance again.

As already said get your JSA claim in straight away, if this doesn't include Housing Ben and Council Tax forms when you apply you will need to contact them separately through your local council.

terryw

Fran wrote: »

rosiebell,

<snip>

As already said get your JSA claim in straight away, if this doesn't include Housing Ben and Council Tax forms when you apply you will need to contact them separately through your local council.

Regardless of the JSA giving you HB and CT forms, you should go tomorrow to the council benefit people and complete their forms. Do not rely on the JSA forms...they often strangely disappear, are received too late, and you will probably have to fill in the council forms as well.

Make it a priority tomorrow, Monday, to complete and hand in the council forms, even if you have to send some additional information later.

terryw

Fran

terryw wrote: »

Regardless of the JSA giving you HB and CT forms, you should go tomorrow to the council benefit people and complete their forms. Do not rely on the JSA forms...they often strangely disappear, are received too late, and you will probably have to fill in the council forms as well.

Make it a priority tomorrow, Monday, to complete and hand in the council forms, even if you have to send some additional information later.

terryw

And ask for a receipt!!

dmg24

Fran wrote: »

rosiebell,

If you are having to care for your mum more than before you could try putting in a claim for Carer's Allowance again.

As already said get your JSA claim in straight away, if this doesn't include Housing Ben and Council Tax forms when you apply you will need to contact them separately through your local council.

It sounds like the OP's mum did not qualify for DLA/ Attendance Allowance previously, therefore they would need to apply for this before applying for CA.