Welfare Rights Training 2009

1. Welfare Rights Training 2009

2. Carers Allowance • Taxable: Yes • Means Tested: No (Only earnings stops it) • An allowance paid to someone over 16 who spends at least 35 hours looking after a qualifying disabled person

3. CARERS ALLOWANCE • Who is it for? • Somebody caring for a severely disabled person (not necessarily living with them). “The Severely Disabled Person must be in receipt of” • Attendance Allowance (A.A) • Disability Living Allowance (DLA) Care @ Middle or Higher Rate • Constant Attendance Allowance over £57.50 weekly (Part of Industrial Injuries or War Disablement Pension)

4. CARERS ALLOWANCE Carer Must Spend at least 35hours weekly in respect of one disabled person Be aged over 16 Earning under £95 net weekly after allowable deductions Not be in full time education (more than 21 hours at any level)

5. Carer’s earnings • Net after deducting tax, NI and half contribution to occupational pension scheme • More generous treatment of care costs under CA rules than for other benefits: • The cost of care is allowed if provided by somebody who is not a close relative, this amount can be deducted even if that person is not a registered Child minder etc • Cost of care allowed for a Child under 16 or for the disabled person • Payments deducted up to maximum of half net earnings

6. CARERS ALLOWANCE • Rates • £ Claimant 53.10Adult Dependant 31.70First Child 8.20 (See Note 1)Other Children 11.35 (See Note 1) • Partner’s Earnings Limit before adult addition lost £31.70 • If partner earns £195 or more you will lose one Child addition (See note 1) • Lose another Child addition for each extra £26 over £195 (See note 1)

7. CARERS ALLOWANCE NOTE 1 (Child additions) Existing claimants only pre April 2003 These loses of Child addition only apply to existing Carers Allowance claims made pre April 2003 with transitional protected child additions included After April 2003 (Child additions were abolished) Earnings / income under £15,575 yearly should allow Child Tax Credit to be paid in full for any children.

8. NOTES: • Only one CA allowed per disabled person • Can get CA and DLA / AA as claimant • Always get the carer to put in a Carers Allowance claim within three months of any DLA or AA award as backdating is normally limited to three months, except when first awarded DLA or AA or increasing DLA or AA then full backdating is allowed as long as the Carers Allowance is put in within three months of the new award • If Carers Allowance is PAID, the disabled person will lose any Severe Disability Premium (SDP) paid or included in any other Means tested benefit calculations • Any backdated Carers Allowance award does not effect any SDP previously included or paid in the disabled persons Income Support, IB(JSA), IB (ESA), Pension Credit, Housing, Council Tax Benefit or any other means tested calculations.

9. The Carer Premium (£29.50) • The Carers Premium is £29.50 a week for each person who qualifies. It can be awarded in addition to any others • You will qualify for a Carer Premium if: • You are actually paid any amount of Carers Allowance Or • You have an underlying entitlement to Carers Allowance: E.g. you are entitled to CA but it cannot be paid because of the overlapping benefit rules (See below).

10. Underlying CA If you only have an underlying entitlement to CA, there are some extra rules You must have actually claimed Carers Allowance And You are entitled to CA but the overlapping benefit rules mean that you cannot be paid CA because you receive another non-means tested income maintenance benefit And The person you are caring for must continue to receive Attendance Allowance or the middle or higher rate of D.L.A. care component.

11. Notes: • That if you have overlapping CA, you can qualify for a Carers Premium and the person you are caring for will still be entitled to the Severe Disability Premium. • When claiming Carers Allowance always backdate a claim for 3 months if allowed

12. Severe Disability Premium/s • (Single £52.85 / Couple £105.70) • The Severe Disability Premium (SDP) is part of the means tested benefit system and can be awarded on top of the Disability Premium, Enhanced Disability Premium or the Pensioner Premium in IS, HB, CTB, IBJSA, PC, IBESA. • To qualify, you must be: If Single? • An Income Support or other means tested benefit (HB / CTB / PC / IBJSA / IBESA etc) claimant; who gets D.L.A. Care Component at the middle or higher rate, or Attendance Allowance (or Constant Attendance Allowance over £57.40); and you technically count as “living alone”;

13. Severe Disability Premium/s (Single £52.85 / Couple £105.70) If a Couple? If you both get DLA middle or higher rate Care Component or Attendance Allowance, and no one gets PAIDCarers Allowance (CA) for looking after either you or your partner, your SDP will be the couple Rate £105.70 If you both get DLA middle or higher rate Care Component or Attendance Allowance, and one person gets paidCA for looking after you or your partner, your SDP will be single rate £52.85 If two people are getting CA for looking after you and your partner, you will not get the SDP at all.

14. Notes: • That it is quite possible for you to get CA for looking after your partner (as well as your own DLA Care Component or Attendance Allowance). • If you, or your partner, or both of you, get paid any CA for looking after the other, that excludes you from the single or double SDP. but you can still get the Carer Premium(s) which are worth a lot less.

15. Carers & Overlapping Benefits Carers Allowance will not be paid if you have more from: Incapacity benefit Employment & Support Allowance Contributory Severe Disablement Allowance (Option) State Pension Maternity Allowance Contribution Based JSA Widows or Bereavement Benefits Unemployability Supplement (IIB & WP)

16. END • Questions and Answers?