AIBU to be angry about the benefits system

@Lavenderblue11 but I also agree there are far to many job dodgers claiming

its a Chinese bot - people don’t “tend” to their children

She would only be getting the money due to extortionate childcare costs ?

Absolutely…but that’s not what I’m saying is a joke it’s the fact ppl can have an income of £4000 and still get benefits….that is a joke

Exactly. Not sure how people can begrudge others getting help with childcare when it keeps someone in the workforce paying taxes for many years to come. It's not like she's going on a cruise with the UC money is it, it's just helping towards paying a ( massive ) bill ?

At least she works, unlike a lot of job-dodging layabouts who are claiming absolutely everything.

UC rolled six benefits into one. The current government are looking to do away with the work capability assessment on UC and link it to PIP, Childcare costs are part of a UC claim as this thread shows but I agree the other childcare that's available can be confusing. I don't see how they could make PIP part of UC as many people claiming PIP will not be on a low enough income to claim UC or may have significant savings that rule them out of claiming?

Applying for benefits should be easier. It should be all one system. It isn’t.

one for universal credit
one for PIP
one for child benefit
one for childcare cost
one for this one for that. Each one needs virtually the same info, is horrendous if you’re a single disabled parent of three children.
I’ve barely time for a shower let alone all the hoop jumping (try doing that in a wheelchair). I swear they want blood, your inside leg measurement and cup size.
Need to change one little detail - nope you have to start all over. Ff’s!

Anyone can choose to migrate over to UC at any time. They just need to make sure they will be better off.

You can choose to switch to UC if you so wish. You don’t have to wait for managed migration.

Well OP's example shows that it isn't... many more people are on universal credit and get top ups to be able to afford luxuries frankly!

Good for those on UC, not for those still waiting to be migrated over though. Nobody in my circle is on anywhere near this amount of money - they’re visiting food banks and skipping meals.

I'm pretty sure if you actually applied through the official claims platform you wouldn't be entitled to anything. If you say you have plenty of disposable income you shouldn't be entitled to benefits. My family of 4 are on the brink of eligibility since I have started to up my work hours through self employment + employment for the first time in 5 years since becoming a mum. Some months I receive a payout and others I get £0. Dependant on my self employed income for that month. So even though we technically qualify for 85% child care costs repaid, it is looked at as a whole regards to meeting the threshold for allowance.

The cost of living means that basic entry salary for living wage is now over £21k a year. 2 of those salaries equate a take home (excluding any student loan payments) of approximately £3800/month.
whereas one salary of £50k equates a take home of around £3200/month and also means you’re not able to claim any form of benefit and child benefit gets reduced just over this figure.
you only get the childcare vouchers through work I believe - I wouldn’t really feel too hard done by OP. Be grateful
you haven’t needed it to survive.
ifyou don’t need it then so be it. There are many others that are not in that position.

Someone who is disabled and cannot work can get UC. Once assessed as having LCWRA ( Limited capability for work and work related activity ) they can get another £400 a month. When they are awarded that, if they have a partner they can then get a work allowance and if on PIP the partner can get a carers element regardless of how many hours they work. It's not great if neither are working but when that work allowance is factored in it really isn't bad.

There is plenty of information out there. The Gov.uk site is full of all kinds of benefits people can claim and some of the online benefit calculators are very easy to use. Short of doing an individual benefit check on everybody I'm not sure what more the government could do. Organizations like CAB and Age Uk are overwhelmed with people asking for benefit checks and form filling. Anyone can ask CAB for a benefit check if they are not sure or not confident to do it themselves. they may have to wait a couple of weeks but they will get it. people like martin lewis are constantly encouraging people to check, reminding people about all sorts of benefits they can claim, highlighting when there's a last date to claim by to get cost of living payments etc. Seriously what more do people want ?

curious as to how you’d be entitled to that - we are in an almost identical position earnings wise and pay for childcare etc and are entitled to nothing except the child benefit we already receive.

There is a lot of help available through means tested and non means tested benefits, especially if disabled or too ill to work

This could not be further from the truth in my experience. The maximum amount a single adult who isn’t fit for work can claim is £140 ESA per week. Half the state pension (which is the MN standard for poverty and starvation). Yes there’s PIP but hardly any claims get granted first time and the govt famously rejects claims made by the terminally ill, so what chance does anyone else have?

The benefit system is appalling for those who are disabled. It really, really upsets me.

This is why UC is in some ways a much better system, it recognizes wage increases immediately and adjusts benefits accordingly so it's harder to be overpaid.

Yes I said in my post that it was non means tested. my point was that people will claim what they can regardless of whether they need it or not. And of course they are completely entitled to do so.

The benefit system in this country is a trap. We fell on hard times in 2012 and claimed housing and council tax benefit, whilst both working full time I’d like to add.

Every single time my partner or I had a change in circumstances or income we immediately declared it.

By 2022 we in a position where we no longer needed to claim. Instantly hit with over payment bills. We’re still paying it back.

If you have got this far not needing that extra 16k to house, feed and clothe your family it is 100% not worth it.

@TheLovelinessOfDemons you are the exactly the sort of person who deserves more. The scroungers, tax dodgers and those fiddling the system are depriving people like you. There would be more for those in dire need if half the people I've met actually declared their taxes properly or companies like Boots and Amazon etc paid tax properly!

You should be angry that the government choose not to inform people of their entitlements so much so that they have a surplus of millions in unclaimed benefits every year.

YABU to blame the benefits system per se..

Isn't Attendance Allowance essentially DLA/PIP for people of pension age?

DLA/PIP is not means tested either.

Yes, you're right, if people can, some people will. And that's why the country is knackered. Greed and entitlement.