Surely there's benefits for people like me

[Bpdqueen]

I'm a single adult, kids moved out I work 30 hrs a week my take home pay after tax and NI is around £1000 4 weekly. My mortgage payments are £450 a month. Leaving £550 a month for all bills food petrol the only benefit I get is 25% of council tax which brings ct down to £100ish a month. I used to get working tax credit but I apparently earn to much I have lots of medical conditions but I don't think anything enough to claim pip as I'm Mobile and capable of looking after myself and working. Am I missing something or am I expected to be able to live on this.
Aibu - yes that's more than enough to live on.
Yanbu - no you should be entitled to help on such a low income

Thanks everyone for your comments im going to relook into universal credit again

www.entitledto.co.uk

Try this benefits calculator, it will tell you if you are entitled to anything. If you have less than 16k in saving then you may get universal credit

I would apply for PIP. If you score 8 points you would qualify for the daily living element.
Take your time filling in the form - look for examples online and look at the descriptors carefully to give examples of how your difficulties impact on your ability to live a 'normal' life.

You can work and still be eligible for PIP so definitely look into applying

Sorry to jump in but can I ask how you managed to score any points? I would love to know where to start. All the questions to me are geared at physical disabilities.

sorry that was directed at @NotthesameNotok

@whywhythough

Sorry to jump in but can I ask how you managed to score any points? I would love to know where to start. All the questions to me are geared at physical disabilities.

I had someone come to my house (pre Covid) as I cannot get to the assessment centre that in itself showed them how severe my issues are I think.

Things like managing money they asked a lot of questions too

Communication was a big one as I also have selective mutism

They asked a lot about the help I need from DP as well as he manages the finances and other things

As PP have said, PIP is all about what you can do and how easily. Do your MH conditions mean that it is a strain getting dressed or even out of bed at times, for instance? Do you need more time to do things than a typical person might? Do you need a special piece of equipment to undertake tasks (Doesn’t have to actually be specially designed for the task - it could be something like holding a shower screen to get in and out of the bath or using a supermarket trolley for balance or to reduce strain as you shop)? Some of these may not apply but they are examples of the kind of things you might not realise could bump up the points!

www.moneysavingexpert.com/news/2022/04/millions-of-people-will-see-their-benefits--such-as-universal-cr/

Also my meltdowns trigger something called hemiplegic migraine so I had to provide a neurology report so any other conditions they want to see a letter or they contact the consultant if that’s relevant

@AnotherEmma

It depends on your health conditions and the extent to which they affect you.

If you applied for UC, did a Work Capability Assessment (WCA) and got put in the "Limited Capability for Work" (LCW) group, you would be entitled to a work allowance, which means that £573 of your earnings would be completely ignored, and 55% of the rest would be deducted from your UC. As a result, you would get a small amount of UC.

You can find out more about WCA, LCW etc at www.citizensadvice.org.uk/benefits/universal-credit/claiming/getting-universal-credit-if-youre-sick-or-disabled/
and also see www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/employment-and-support-allowance/take-the-esa-test
(Note this page refers to ESA which you can't claim as you're working more than 16 hours, but the assessment works the same on UC.)

From what you say, it sounds unlikely you'd qualify for PIP, but you can check the criteria here:
www.citizensadvice.org.uk/benefits/sick-or-disabled-people-and-carers/pip/before-claiming/check-you-are-eligible/
and www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/personal-independence-payment-pip/pip-self-test

Lastly there is a possibility you might be eligible for Council Tax Reduction (called Council Tax Support by some councils). You would need to use a benefit calculator such as entitledto or Turn2Us. If I had to guess I'd say you probably won't be entitled but it's worth checking.

I was going to tag you in this post thinking you would know and advise

but then saw your reply and you have 😀

Yup, you'd be entitled to approx £100pm UC.

Single adult rate is £344pm.

Earnings of 1K a month - £543 work allowance as you don't get paid any UC for your housing costs as your own, means = £457 earnings are considered.

55p taper so £457 x 0.55 = £251. So £251 would be deducted from your award for £344, so you'd get just under £100 a month in UC.

How long until your mortgage is paid off?
I'd advise not moving to rented as rent is usually higher than your mortgage payme t is.
If you can I'd really try and have a lodger as that would help alot.

Also apply for pip as you might get some you never know

Sorry OP.

Non-dom?
Large corporate wanting support who make significant donations to MPs/ministers/parties?
Oligarch or billionaire needing to be encouraged to 'spend' wealth here?
MP or financial services or another profession where if we pay peanuts then get monkeys?
Member of Royal family?
Large, populist media organisation?
Political interests in NI required to provide a working majority due to ill-conceived election?
Fraudulent or inappropriate recipient of tens of billions of Covid spend?
[insert other favoured group]
If so then Heisenberg's magic money tree has come into existence.

If not then magic money tree non-existence means we can't pay what we can't afford.
Please see the millions of tax-paying SE ineligible for furlough/Covid support, benefit recipients and working families.

* I* get pip as can’t work due to autism so you should look into it

You don't get pip because you can't work. PIP iis based on what daily tasks you need assistance or prompting with. Nothing to do with work.
People can work full time but qualify for pip as they need help to get showered and dressed and someone to get them to their work in morning.

@Bpdqueen anyone can apply for pip whether working or not, full time part time or otherwise. Pip is not income related and theeefore not means tested. Apply. Then wait and see if you qualify.

I work full time and I’m a higher rate tax payer. I get pip.

Could you work from home for extra income e.g. ironing, baking etc?

@Blondeshavemorefun

You don't even need help to be eligible for PIP. It can be aids you use to help you or that you do everything slower than others.

I get PIP, work full time in a busy, fast paced professional role and I don't have a carer.

I'm exactly the same. I've tried various benefit calculators, my rent's £600 a month, and l'm entitled to nothing except the 25% off my council tax.

@Geezabreak82

It really bugs me that Mums Net HQ put a warning on some posts advising the responses aren't necessarily from people with any qualifications or expertise, but they don't attach it to posts like this about benefits entitlement which is highly complex and where good advice would make a real difference to people's quality of life.

OP - you've not provided enough information to do a benefits calculation, but it sounds like you are on pretty close to minimum wage so you may well be entitled to some Universal Credit. It will probably depend on whether you have a lot of equity in your house, or decent savings. You can do a benefits check on the Turn 2 Us website and if you give them all the relevant info they will calculate what you're entitled to based on your income.

If you are unable to work full-time because of ill-health you may also be entitled to PIP. As you've noticed the criteria is set high and it can be difficult to access, but it would definitely be worth speaking to a benefits adviser at a local Citizens Advice Bureaux or another welfare advice service to get some expert advice on whether it's worth making a claim based in your circumstances.

The irony of course is that despite your initial point about disclaimers you then go on to give decidedly un-expert advice! However you are correct that contacting Citizens Advice would be sensible.

On Universal Credit you cannot be referred for a work capability assessment unless you earn less than 16 x nmw per week unless you get PIP also in which case it doesn't matter how many hours you work. Unfortunately if earning £1000 every four weeks you are over that threshold so there is no help. If you were renting you may be eligible for some UC but not with a mortgage.
You could look at PIP if you struggle with daily living activities and/ or mobility. can you wash and dress yourself, cook a simple meal, communicate, eat and drink ok, go out alone or do you have difficulties with these things or are unable to do them in a timely manner, safely , reliably etc. These are the sorts of things the PIP form will ask for.

@Birkenshock

Yup, you'd be entitled to approx £100pm UC.

Single adult rate is £344pm.

Earnings of 1K a month - £543 work allowance as you don't get paid any UC for your housing costs as your own, means = £457 earnings are considered.

55p taper so £457 x 0.55 = £251. So £251 would be deducted from your award for £344, so you'd get just under £100 a month in UC.

The work allowance only applies if the claimant has LCW. Without LCW (or dependent children), there's no work allowance, which means all earnings are counted, and for OP that would wipe out her UC entitlement.