Comments please Ref Carers Allowance / Pension

[HOWLER]

Hi

Recently come of age 65 and applied for my pension. No problem all ok. However upon getting my pension it would appear i cant have Carers Allowance and this will be stopped .

 

Is this right as i still care for my wife on a daily basis.

How can this be right as i feel a pension is not a benefit but cash i have paid in to the system .

 

Your comments invited :mad2:

[martin2006]

Im not upto speed on benefits but i suggest you visit one of the online benefit calculators and enter your details and circumstances, it will then tell you what you should be entitled to claim if not carer's allowance

 

http://www.turn2us.org.uk is one to use

[antone]

CA and the State Retirement Pension are "overlapping benefits" - in other words, they are paid for the same basic reason. CA is paid to people who are unable to work, or have limited availability for work, because they care for someone full time. So while you can have an underlying entitlement to CA while you receive your SRP, if your SRP amount exceeds what CA would pay you, you won't actually be paid any CA. Whether it's worth applying for CA therefore depends on whether or not you may need to claim any means tested benefits, such as State Pension Credit or Housing Benefit.

 

It's perfectly consistent. Your SRP is not "cash you paid into the system" - it's being paid by people who are working today, just as you paid the pensions of your elders while you were working. It's contributory, yes, but it's still a benefit. It's designed to replace your work income once you have reached retirement age, just as CA is designed to replace the work income of those who can't work because of their caring responsibilities. Other contributory benefits such as JSA© and ESA© are treated in the same way.

[honeybee13]

Hello there.

 

Martin's idea of the benefits calculator is a good one.

 

Does your wife qualify for Attendance Allowance? She would need to be over 65.

 

HB

[HOWLER]

Im not upto speed on benefits but i suggest you visit one of the online benefit calculators and enter your details and circumstances, it will then tell you what you should be entitled to claim if not carer's allowance

 

http://www.turn2us.org.uk is one to use[/quote

 

Thankyou i tried it and it seems theres a new system of benefits such as Pension Credit , Carers Addition or Carers Premium.

All depending on income and net worth.

 

Ah well it was nice while it lasted.

[HOWLER]

Hello there.

 

Martin's idea of the benefits calculator is a good one.

 

Does your wife qualify for Attendance Allowance? She would need to be over 65.

 

HB

 

Yes she is 67 and me 65. Yes she qualifies for higher rate everything. X

[HOWLER]

Thank you so much for the explanation.(antone)

What really peevs me is my state pension would have been just the same without my wife being ill.

thanks again to all who took time out to give me info.

Bless you all.

[reallymadwoman]

You should still use a benefits checker as underlying entitlement to carer's allowance passports you to premiums on some other benefits so you may still be better off than you expected. If you're not confident at checking for yourself, Age Concern are supposed to be really helpful.

[antone]

Thank you so much for the explanation.(antone)

What really peevs me is my state pension would have been just the same without my wife being ill.

thanks again to all who took time out to give me info.

Bless you all.

 

Yes - to be clear, I'm not saying that I agree with the way things are, but well...

 

Also note that State Pension Credit does not replace the State Retirement Pension, but may be paid in addition if SRP on its own is less than the amount that "the law says you need to live on". Definitely worth checking out a benefit calculator.