£20 per week Universal credit changes

[FlatteredFool]

I've been worrying about the £20 a week extra stopping for a while although I can't say I noticed an increase in the amount I was given. Today I've looked at the breakdown of the benefit and discovered that the extra was taken off me anyway due to the benefit cap. If I didn't get child maintenance, not that he pays the right amount, then I'd be scraping by at best. The benefit cap takes £380 a month off. During the top up times it was £460. So the actual amount I get hasn't changed. How can the government say they are helping when they aren't at all?

[quote JasonMomoasgirlfriend]@iamtheoneandonlyyy yeh sorry I didn't actually know this. I thought if there's a process in place it would be followed. So apologies to the way I have worded previous posts.[/quote]
You know where you can stick your apologies

I think it's shit op. Especially with the NI increase, food prices shooting up and utilities sky rocketing, It's going to be a really, really difficult winter for lots of families.

@Dishwashersaurous

Benefit cap doesn't apply to disabled

Nor did the uplift. Most of us didn't get it

[quote MyDcAreMarvel]**@Maverickess* How on earth do you know what I earned and therefore got paid from tax credits 🤷* your post read like you only received the £500 one off payment. Wtc and UC claimants were allocated exactly the same amount. There was a lot of confusion for wtc claimants thinking they were only allocated the £500 and were not allocated the £20 a week also , I was just explaining that, it wasn’t a criticism.[/quote]
Well I'm sorry you misunderstood my post, I thought I'd made it quite clear by trying to explain the £500 for WTC claimants was because the uplift for WTC stopped before the UC one did, therefore they got the £500 instead.

@Viviennemary

I think maintenance should be tsken into account Its wrong that two single parents get the same benefits when one might get a substantial amount from their ex. Not on.

Why take it away, why punish people.

It used to be taken into account and they changed it as it was used to continue abusing the ex spouse/partner and children.

@Viviennemary

I think maintenance should be tsken into account Its wrong that two single parents get the same benefits when one might get a substantial amount from their ex. Not on.

It used to be taken into account until they realised that if the father decided not to pay or pay less than the minimum amount the children lived in poverty

@Viviennemary

I think maintenance should be tsken into account Its wrong that two single parents get the same benefits when one might get a substantial amount from their ex. Not on.

Could be if they could come up with a way to make sure it's paid, on time, and the correct amounts and we'll, actually paid.

I wouldn't have an issue with that. On paper I apparently was getting X amount when actually I was getting the sum total of sweet fuck all.

@GetDrunkWithMe

So you'll point out the CSA comment but not the bit about contacting your MPs and actually trying to do something about the £20 being removed, says it all.

It hasn't been called the CSA for nearly 10 years, which I think is probably a fairly good indicator of how wildly out of touch with the modern realities of claiming benefits you are.

I can see the problems if people dont pay up. But I still think its unfair.

@Viviennemary

I can see the problems if people dont pay up. But I still think its unfair.

It is unfair, but what can be done? They don't enforce absent parents to pay.

The law is there, but it is not enforced.

Maybe there should be a minimum per child that needs to be paid regardless of income. When the absent parent earns any money they should have it taken off them by the HMRC. With no time limit of when it can be taken, so they can't get away with it.

Sorry if it's been covered, but why was the uplift introduced during the covid restrictions? What extra expenses what was it intended to cover? I might be being dim, but googling does not seem to provide an answer to this question.

It really annoys me when I see people moaning about losing the £20 a week and they’re saying things like “I can only have my heating on for an hour a night” “i have to constantly try and keep the food bill as low as possible”

I have two jobs, I work every single day of the week. I haven’t had my heating on at all this winter, I sit with a cover at night to avoid putting it on in fact. I’am a single parent, I sometimes just have toast for tea to avoid spending money on food. Similar story to all those who get universal credit. I don’t see what their moaning about, just get on with it. Lots of people that work hard, are in a similar boat. I get no benefits at all.

@Beansontoast45 Who looks after your children when you are working?

Of course maintenance shouldn't be taken into account, even the government recognises that.

There are so many feckless fathers that either dont pay or pay late or unpredictably that it can't possibly be right to leave their children unsupported and in poverty.

The £20 extra was only ever temporarily, and everyone knew that. No way can we afford to keep paying that out - the economy is on its knees. Everyone’s going to be suffering with the rise in the cost of living, not just those on UC.

@Rooroobear

Wow the comments on here “your rent is paid, your council tax is paid” the absolute ignorance of some women on here!! Disgusting. No the rent and council tax is not paid, it is helped with not fully paid. How lovely it must be up there above all us lowly universal credit peasants. I work and I work hard I still pay rent and a lot of council tax. Get off your high horses!

This. Amazing how many people on here are in their ignorant little bubble and have literally no idea how the real world works.

@Viviennemary

I can see the problems if people dont pay up. But I still think its unfair.

It is unfair and maybe at some point they will reverse it to recoup some money back or, better still, enforce parents of both sexes to financially support any children they choose to have themselves rather than the state doing it.

@Beansontoast45

That doesn't make it ok! You shouldn't have to live like that, nobody should. Whether you receive some benefits, full benefits, nothing at all- people shouldn't have to keep their heating off and shouldn't have to go without a decent meal.

I haven't read all the replies but got the gist from a few

My family is on UC after my husband had an accident in 2018 and couldn't work anymore. I work 30hrs a week and can't work more due to a disability although I am in the process of trying to set up my own business to try to bring in some more money.

Part of the UC we get is housing benefit but we have to top that up by £250pm ourselves to cover our rent. We also get a council tax reduction.

The removal of this money is something we can ill afford. We're lucky to live in Scotland as ScotGov are giving people money as part of the child payment they recently introduced. Also they give a carers supplement each twice a year which is doubled in Dec to £460 so those 2 extra payments will help us out significantly to offset the reduction in UC. Although our energy company has gone under and we've been moved to another company with higher tariffs so we're screwed in that respect as our monthly DD for gas and electricity has gone up.

My work has been offering OT but there's no point in me taking it due to how much will get taken off by UC. It's utterly shit. We are in a catch 22 situation.

Before my husband's accident we were in a good financial position and were saving for a mortgage. Now we're in debt with no prospect of getting our own house. We're stuck in the insecure renting trap with a landlord who DGAF. If we were asked to leave we would have to go to the council as homeless with 2 young kids.

The removal of the UC uplift is criminal as far as I'm concerned. Not everyone can work or increase their hours. We should be looking after the less fortunate in our society. It's a fucking disgrace. How anyone can think it's a good idea is beyond me. This is not a society I want to be part of. I regularly donate to our local foodbank as I know there are people in a worse situation than me. It wouldn't take much for my family to be needing their services.

@Pippa12

The country is on its knees tho, we are robbing Peter to pay Paul. Surely to keep the uplift the taxes would just have to rise elsewhere. I’m not disputing the country is in a state, but it’s horrendous times ahead for those working, claiming benefits or a mixture of both.

And yet the govt finds money for all sorts of the endeavours when 'needed' (HS2, track and trace, reducing stamp duty, etc)

Taking away the uplift will have a knock on effect on the rest of the economy---the govt needs people to spend money so companies do not go bankrupt and people retain their jobs. Millions of people losing this money will spend less.

It's very short-sighted.

@Beansontoast45

It really annoys me when I see people moaning about losing the £20 a week and they’re saying things like “I can only have my heating on for an hour a night” “i have to constantly try and keep the food bill as low as possible”

I have two jobs, I work every single day of the week. I haven’t had my heating on at all this winter, I sit with a cover at night to avoid putting it on in fact. I’am a single parent, I sometimes just have toast for tea to avoid spending money on food. Similar story to all those who get universal credit. I don’t see what their moaning about, just get on with it. Lots of people that work hard, are in a similar boat. I get no benefits at all.

So is it because you don't have the money or because you don't want to spend it?

@JasonMomoasgirlfriend

Maybe you need to ensure the father pays the correct amount for the children he chose to have.

Not always possible know-it-all. My child's father stopped paying and I've been contacting csa constantly for 5 months and still haven't received a single penny. And I contact them at least twice a week.