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Universal credit ..

kelly334
kelly334 Community member Posts: 9 Listener
hello 
I started to receive uc. In November last year, my husband works 40 hours a week for minimum wage
so were told we needed to make a joint claim..ten months later we are still getting the minimum amount of £42 pounds a month, I’m still waiting to be assessed for the disability part of my claim. I’m also still waiting for my tribunal date for PIP. I made my claim for PIP in April last year and we all know how long that takes..no one seems to know why I’m waiting so long for an medical assessment from uc. My work coach is clueless about the hole benefits system, I’ve spoken to him several times about the every third month we get £0 he stated  it’s because my husband must have worked more hours then usual..not the case he works 40 hours with never any change. I’ve googled the problem over the last few days and it due to the DWP using RTI so if there are five Fridays in a month we get nothing. My work coach couldn’t comment as he knows nothing about this problem.. as I’ve not been able to find anybody that seem to know why my assessment is still pending if any of you guys are having the same problem but it seems to me they are waiting for my PIP court hearing so not to contradict themselves and as the DMP puts Capita and Atos  to deal with their assessment, which just makes up a narrative that makes no sense and the uc has their own medical professional .

thank you for reading 

Comments

  • poppy123456
    poppy123456 Community member Posts: 53,359 Disability Gamechanger
    Hi,

    Firstly, are you sending in fit/sick notes from your GP for your UC claim? if so how long have you been sending them and has there been any gaps in sending them?  Do you work at all? I'll help you further once this is answered.

    As UC is a means tested benefit then yes claiming as a couple is correct. The amount of money you're entitled to each month will totally depend on your household income. If your partner receives 2 wages in one month then yes your UC amount will be reduced to zero. It's not the amount of hours that's counted, it's the amount of wages received that's counted. Pop your details into this benefits calculator and it will tell you what you should be claiming. Do be aware that a benefits calculator is only correct if you put all the correct details into it. https://www.entitledto.co.uk/

    Do you have any dependent children? If you don't then there will be no work allowance so everything your partner earns will affect the amount you claim and reduce it by 63p for everything he earns.

    Unfortunately, PIP and the work capability assessment are 2 different benefits and winning your PIP Tribunal will have no affect on your UC claim. You will still need to go through the work capability assessment.

    I would appreciate it if members wouldn't tag me please. I have all notifcations turned off and wouldn't want a member thinking i'm being rude by not replying.
    If i see a question that i know the answer to i will try my best to help.
  • kelly334
    kelly334 Community member Posts: 9 Listener
    Hi Poppy, thank you for your quick response ?
    Yes I provided a fit not at the start of my claim and just sent another one in last month.
    No I don’t work at all I don’t even leave my house alone and haven’t done for years.
    I was diagnosed with rr MS in 2007 and was told I’d had it for a few year as I had several leasions on my brain when I had my first scan, but I was getting back to normal within a few months, and didn’t listen to the advice give by my neurologist about medication or benefits so went back to my life as a busy mum with two small kids.but   my MS started to progress but I was in denial for the next several years.. making excuses not to socialise even lying to family and friends..
    finally told everyone the truth 18 months ago.. medically things have improved tremendously as I’m getting the best treatment available but this is why my problem all started with the DWP.
    Both children grow up but still living at home, one pay regular rent, one in between job so cannot, 

    And the work allowance I thought it said, if one of you can’t work OR you have children.

    And that’s my point about UC and PIp, they are separate but it’s all part of the DWP
    and in my case I got zero on all parts of my assessment by Capita, total lies and only glanced at all my evidence, didn’t record any in her statement. I also have lots of evidence from Neurologist, MS nurse and GP, which completely backs up my claim and disproves my assessor, my point is if I’m assessed for UC there is no way a medical professional could give me zero points with all my evidence and  In the assessment.

    I’m not sure I’m explaining myself too well.. I rambled on, loose track to what I mean, miss words out completely and I’m sorry for that ??
     
  • Adrian_Scope
    Adrian_Scope Posts: 10,821 Scope online community team
    edited August 2019
    Hi @kelly334.
    As @poppy123456 said, you won't currently have a work allowance, however this will change if you're deemed unfit for work.

    If you've been handing in fit notes since the start of your claim (and there hasn't been any gaps in the dates of these), you can call Universal Credit and ask to be referred for a Work Capability Assessment. This should happen automatically after 29 days of supplying fit notes but doesn't always. They'll then send you a UC50 form to fill in and decide whether you need a face to face assessment. 

    Depending on the outcome of this, if you're awarded LCWRA they'll add an extra £336 a month to your UC award. You'll also receive a work allowance (£287 if you rent and £503 if you don't), which is the amount of your partner's earnings that will be disregarded. This will be backdated until 3 full assessment periods after you first supplied a fit note. 

    Unfortunately, if your partner is paid weekly, the 5 weeks in an assessment period rule is correct. They take into account any wages paid in an assessment period, so your award will vary slightly depending on whether your partner is paid 4 or 5 times. For people paid 4-weekly it means they sometimes get two full wages in an assessment period! :(
    Community Manager
    Scope
  • kelly334
    kelly334 Community member Posts: 9 Listener
    Hi Adrian, Yes The RTI is just ridiculous but is way it is for now, I do believe there is a huge joint action claim in the process for this. So just a waiting game to see if that can be changed. And yes I filled in and sent it back a month ago..I did ring and ask why I’m still waiting and spoke to a really helpful chap, he could see my claim from first fit note is pending assessment but he could not see why,. He could push my last fit not through but then he said it would only backdated from that one, so we decided it best to leave it alone..?

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