Author Topic: Cut benefits and increase cigarette tax.  (Read 5398 times)

Diasi

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Re: Cut benefits and increase cigarette tax.
« Reply #75 on: Jun 27, 2020, 09:53:33 PM »

Goingtoseed..
To keep bragging about the (supposedly) vast amounts of money you and your wife receive from the ‘pot’ and share amongst your children is a bloody disgrace when the likes of Ronyork and Diasi get bugger all.. I think it is time for your bragging or fairy tales to stop..

Diasi.. My love to you and your wife..

Thanks scrumpy.

In all fairness to the system I wouldn't really want to be paid for looking after my wife because it's what couples do.

However, having completed several PIP forms I just don't see how a couple can get PIP & one or both get carer's allowance.

If they can then it's a bloody great loophole that needs closing.
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Michael Rolls

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Re: Cut benefits and increase cigarette tax.
« Reply #76 on: Jun 27, 2020, 10:03:09 PM »
I couldn't get carer's allowance, even though I was  most definitely Veronica's carer because I was already in receipt of teh state pension. Never really understood the logic. Had I been under 65 I would have received the carer's allowance, but upon getting to 65 it would stop - so I was effectively being penalised compared to someone who didn't have a dependent spouse for whom to care
Mike
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klondike

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Re: Cut benefits and increase cigarette tax.
« Reply #77 on: Jun 27, 2020, 10:49:44 PM »
I imagine that the logic is that under 65 you would be deprived of the opportunity to work by being a carer and that s what the financial compensation is for.


My sister in law is disabled and gets pip. I think her husband was paid a carers allowance. He has since moved onto state pension but I don't know if that means it was stopped.


I thought that the carers allowance was allocated to the disabled person and they could pay who they liked to be carer but that may have been several changes in the rules ago or never part of them. I've never had a bean from the state apart from the pension which I paid in for for donkey's years and got short changed on by one year.
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Michael Rolls

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Re: Cut benefits and increase cigarette tax.
« Reply #78 on: Jun 27, 2020, 11:12:05 PM »
I imagine that the logic is that under 65 you would be deprived of the opportunity to work by being a carer and that s what the financial compensation is for.

Good point. I hadn’t thought of that.
Mike
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GrannyMac

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Re: Cut benefits and increase cigarette tax.
« Reply #79 on: Jun 27, 2020, 11:14:15 PM »

I don’t get this ‘carer looking after a carer’ lark.. and both claiming an allowance.

My question is ..who looks after the carers that are caring for each other.?   Maybe a close family member could claim an allowance for this..!!

I find particularly puzzling the 'Severe Disability allowance' which would suggest that both parties would need support rather than give it. 

Sorry your wife isn't feeling too good Phil.

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Goingtoseed

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Re: Cut benefits and increase cigarette tax.
« Reply #80 on: Jun 27, 2020, 11:34:59 PM »
If I wasn't 100% fighting fit there's no way I could perform all the care duties so it'd be utterly ludicrous for me to get PIP on the basis that I need personal care & help with my mobility & for my wife to be providing the care.

The only way round it that I can see is for the couple to claim that someone else looks after them but the DWP don't ask for any proof of this so one of the couple could act a lot more disabled than they are at a medical & be actually fit enough to do the caring.

Simple as that.


You would have to read the various Upper Tribunal cases to understand exactly what would constitute 'caring'. In the ordinary sense of caring is not what is only required.
Talking to them, looking after their finances and even long distant telephone conversations could amount to 'caring'. You could have a couple where one is deaf and the other has mobility issues. One would help with the hearing problem with the other and the deaf one could help with personal physical tasks for the other.


And as for what constitutes a disability, Attendance Allowance can even be awarded simply because age itself is an issue without a formal disability being involved.

Goingtoseed

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Re: Cut benefits and increase cigarette tax.
« Reply #81 on: Jun 27, 2020, 11:36:26 PM »

That's always puzzled me and I've tried out all sorts of circumstances in my mind.  I suppose a physically able but blind person could care for a chair-ridden person,  if the disabled one followed the other around in a wheel-chair telling them what to do.   That is about the only one I can think of.


You are getting on the right track with that way of thinking.

Goingtoseed

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Re: Cut benefits and increase cigarette tax.
« Reply #82 on: Jun 27, 2020, 11:50:50 PM »
It doesn't work like that as PIP isn't awarded on the basis of a disability, it's awarded on the basis of how the disability affects day-to-day functioning.


Not exactly and make a claim on that basis you would most likely fail.


PIP is made up of various descriptors that the government came up with would constitute being disabled.
You don't actually need a diagnosis of what the problem is only some evidence of the difficulties that it poses you on a day to day basis.
Take a claim based on being depressed. You would have to fit enough of the various descriptors that would match the difficulties you have with living with depression.
There is the overall test that even if you could manage a scenario like making a simple meal for one, if you could not do it to a satisfactory level, or that you could not do it again within a reasonable time frame or you did get halfway through the task but had to give up then you could not make such a meal and for that you would be awarded full points for that descriptor.
The descriptors produce points. You have to score a minimum of 8 points for the standard award and over 12 points for the enhanced award.
If you had to use a stick to help with mobilising, you used an aid such as a long handled brush to clean your back in the bath, you had an aid in the kitchen to help with cutting up vegetables and an aid to make sure you took the right medication you would get 8 points. Each aid used awards 2 points. An aid to putting shoes on is also an aid.

Goingtoseed

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Re: Cut benefits and increase cigarette tax.
« Reply #83 on: Jun 28, 2020, 12:00:07 AM »


Goingtoseed..
To keep bragging about the (supposedly) vast amounts of money you and your wife receive from the ‘pot’ and share amongst your children is a bloody disgrace when the likes of Ronyork and Diasi get bugger all.. I think it is time for your bragging or fairy tales to stop..


Diasi.. My love to you and your wife..


I'm not bragging about anything. I'm giving examples of what many people are entitled to but for some reason they either refuse or fail through ignorance, to make the claims.


The government accept that 1.3 million families are failing to claim Pension Credit every year to the tune of £3.5b a year yet do nothing to get these people to make a claim for the money that they are entitled to.




Goingtoseed

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Re: Cut benefits and increase cigarette tax.
« Reply #84 on: Jun 28, 2020, 12:09:18 AM »
Thanks scrumpy.

In all fairness to the system I wouldn't really want to be paid for looking after my wife because it's what couples do.

However, having completed several PIP forms I just don't see how a couple can get PIP & one or both get carer's allowance.

If they can then it's a bloody great loophole that needs closing.


It's not a loophole it's a piece of legislation that various governments have realised cannot be changed because they simply don't know what to change it to without it affecting genuine carers who need the extra money. In fact when they devised Universal Credit they decided to do away with the Carers Allowance as such because they accept it is unenforceable. Instead of stopping it altogether which is the obvious thing but would harm some carers by losing them money, they decided against putting any rules down for those wanting to claim it. All you now have to do is tell the DWP when making a claim for UC that they care for someone - no checks or evidence is asked for. The UC claimant then gets the extra until they tell the DWP that they have stopped caring.

Goingtoseed

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Re: Cut benefits and increase cigarette tax.
« Reply #85 on: Jun 28, 2020, 12:58:37 AM »
I find particularly puzzling the 'Severe Disability allowance' which would suggest that both parties would need support rather than give it. 

Sorry your wife isn't feeling too good Phil.


The SDA is given for a couple if both claim Attendance Allowance or PIP. One might be suffering from a mental health disorder whilst the other and physical issues. Both fit the criteria for the benefit (they don't have to have the support just that it would help if it was available). One could help the other with the differing needs. I have to be honest I don't understand why SDA is given as it could be seen to be making a disability benefit payment twice over, but it is there to be given and does not need to be claimed.


Most people have the same confusion over what is a disability and what help is needed. As an example of mobility under PIP. If you can walk 48 meters in a normal manner but could not make the return trip without taking time out first to get your breath back then you are deemed only to be able to walk no more than 20 metres. Why? Because you did not walk beyond 50 metres - you stopped short at the 48 metre point. That would entitle you to the enhanced mobility award If you walked 52 metres instead you would be deemed as only being able to walk 50 metres which would only get you the standard mobility award.


It's knowing what the rules are and how they are applied. The same goes with Attendance Allowance. You  need to have a disability or illness that makes it hard for you to look after yourself.- age by itself could well be a disability.    It does not matter when the help is needed just as long as it could be given at some point during the day. For night care 20mins during the night is enough to qualify for that element.  

Coffin dodger

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Re: Cut benefits and increase cigarette tax.
« Reply #86 on: Jun 28, 2020, 05:26:33 AM »
I seem to remember carer caring for carer or some such being a running gag in the Liverpool series Bread. They seemed to have had it sorted.

Diasi

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Re: Cut benefits and increase cigarette tax.
« Reply #87 on: Jun 28, 2020, 06:54:21 AM »

It's not a loophole it's a piece of legislation that various governments have realised cannot be changed because they simply don't know what to change it to without it affecting genuine carers who need the extra money.

Of course it's a loophole, it's one of many loopholes in the PIP legislation which has just as many shortfalls that prevent a person from qualifying.

All legislation has loopholes, otherwise lawyers & clever accountants would go out of business.

The fact that a loophole is part of legislation doesn't mean it's not a loophole.

As the lawyer known as Mr Loophole will explain to you.

P.S. This is the test for PIP & shows how it's awarded & the ridiculous prescriptive options from which to choose.

https://bit.ly/3i8HZwO
Make every day count, each day is precious.
"Death leaves a heartache no one can heal, love leaves a memory no one can steal".  (Cassandra)

Diasi

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Re: Cut benefits and increase cigarette tax.
« Reply #88 on: Jun 28, 2020, 07:22:40 AM »
I find particularly puzzling the 'Severe Disability allowance' which would suggest that both parties would need support rather than give it. 

Sorry your wife isn't feeling too good Phil.

Thanks GM.

I'm tempted to explore what benefits I could get & then I can tell the forum firsthand how I got on, even if I don't claim them.
Make every day count, each day is precious.
"Death leaves a heartache no one can heal, love leaves a memory no one can steal".  (Cassandra)

Sheila

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Re: Cut benefits and increase cigarette tax.
« Reply #89 on: Jun 28, 2020, 07:27:05 AM »
Thanks GM.

I'm tempted to explore what benefits I could get & then I can tell the forum firsthand how I got on, even if I don't claim them.

You could probably get Attendance Allowance which could mean you could get some help, maybe with housework, to give you more time with your wife.

I discovered that there are ways of filling in these forms (when claiming for my mother who had dementia).  Citizen's Advice helped me but I think Age UK help too.