AIBU to be angry about the benefits system

[Daffodilsinfebruary]

I have recently discovered by using a free, independent benefits calculator called entitledto that had I applied for Universal Credit over 2 years ago, me and my family would be over £16,000 better off.

I had assumed that benefits were for either single-parent families or people unable to work due to disability.

The majority of our savings would have been from claiming 85% back in childcare costs. We also would have had a payout of over £200 each month in addition.

For context, we bring in just shy off £4,000 a month. I thought this was a very reasonable income and we would be entitled to nil.

I feel angry that we did not know about this. A friend of mine who I met through our children attending the same nursery told me she claims 85% back in childcare costs during a conversation in which I complained of my childcare going up £150.

I did further research and 19 billion pounds apparently goes unclaimed every year.

I’ve never claimed benefits in all my life and worked hard to get on the property ladder.

should I be angry that we didn’t claim, or take it in my stride.

I wonder how many other families who could have claimed but haven’t.

I get more on UC than I did on tax credits. I think it's different for everyone. Housing allowance has been more generous to me than when I was on tax credits.

I am so amazed at the number of people who don’t know about free hours and tax free childcare. Do you not know anyone else with kids? does your nursery not ask for the code?Are there not posters up outside every nursery you walk past and leaflets in dr surgeries and children’s centres, kids clubs etc? Do you not hear about it on the radio and Tv, especially recently with all the news about the entitlements going up??

4K PCM?

you earn LOADS more than me and my husband and we are only entitled to an “extra” £34.50 PCM UC, which just isn’t worth applying for as far as I’m concerned. (I’d have to keep filling in forms once a month for it and I barely have time to fart these days)
how on earth are you eligible for even more
money!!

Imagine only having an income of £4k a month? <<shudders>>

I think you may find once you apply you won't be entitled to anything as it takes off a certain amount according with your salary.

We bring in less than you now, I recently had a pay rise and are no longer entitled but previously we were getting about £30 a month.

Guessing you don't use childcare and have a mortgage

do you have children? Because that doesn’t sound right.

We use childcare and have a mortgage

Unless SE I am a little skeptical about it being hard to claim UC. I think it is quite easy. I suspect most of those who decide not to migrate actually don't need the UC or tax credits in the first place.

UC is online?

I get very angry about benefits. Most people I know whose partners are self employed. They are stay home mums but list as being employees for tax avoidance loop holes. As limited companies, they have 2 cars with petrol etc as expenses. They pay very littke tax. They also have good accountants which mean they are entitled still to child benefit. Some live in council houses courtesy of playing the system of being single parents to get their council house and then move their partners in. It's all legal but it's syste wrangling. My husband brings in over 4k a month and we've never had a penny off the government in child benefit/family allowance, child care etc. He ends up paying more tax than they do. Our system is broken. They're now on about means testing state pensions. Those who've contribute nothing or have good accountants will clear up again. It makes me so upset when I see people really struggling yet these tax dodgers deprive the genuinely needy and the NHS etc from much needed taxes. It is so unfair. But that is life. We just have to accept there are lying, cheating arseholes making the rules and lying cheating arseholes who exploit loop holes. We can moan or vote how we like but it'll never change. We have to accept life is highly unfair and no, karma never comes for them later either.

It sounds right to me with no housing or childcare costs. I get £500pm earning similar, no childcare costs and small housing costs as I have a council flat.

The online calculators aren’t always accurate I’m not sure you’d actually be entitled to that much? For context, I’m a single parent of two children. My take home pay is around £1,500 per month. The online calculators said I should be entitled to around £500 in benefits but I actually get just under £400. I’m the main carer for my children and my ex is on minimum wage so he pays me £200 per month in maintenance. So even with my child tax credits and child maintenance I take home roughly half what you do and it is a struggle financially. The cost of everything keeps going up - insurance premiums, mortgage interest rates, utilities and general cost of living. I’m left with next to nothing at the end of each month and earn just over the threshold to qualify for free school meals etc. If I ever receive a slight pay rise, my tax credits are cut accordingly, so the cost of everything goes up but my income barely increases at all.
The only thing I can take from it is that I have it much better than some others. I worked hard to be able to own my house (mortgaged) so at least I’m not facing a huge rent increase or worrying that I’ll be given an eviction notice and be forced to find somewhere else to live. I could not survive financially without the child tax credits I receive and I’m unable to work extra hours due to the fact that my young children are with me 80% of the time and I have no family to even help with school runs. This is exactly what this “top up” benefit is for and I intend to increase my hours as soon as it’s possible childcare wise.

They are definitely getting stricter. These people working just 16 hours with school aged kids will have a shock when they switch to UC, unless they are carers and have disabled children of course, then they have no work commitments.

She is on UC …maybe she has been asked to do more but she cannot get them at our workplace but a job is better than no job and they seem to be ok with it

£200 a month is quite a big difference there. Is that just UC or CB as well?

............."For context, we bring in just shy off £4,000 a month. I thought this was a very reasonable income and we would be entitled to nil."

£4,000 a month???

My husband and I worked all our lives until I had a serious accident 3 years ago, and he became ill 2 years ago. I get the lower rate of PIP, he gets ESA.
Total = less than £800 a month for the 2 of us - luckily, the house is paid for, but neither of us is eligible for a state pension for another year, and we can't get any help at all because he gets a private pension of £880 per QUARTER

Angry with whom? Yourself? If you like.

It's no one's responsibility but yours I'm afraid.

Tbh, even being a carer doesn't necessarily cut it.

My friend is still on legacy benefits (ESA, carer's allowance and, until very recently, tax credits). Her son was on DLA and has just been awarded PIP (E/DLC + std mobility), and gets UC with the limited capability for work-related activity element.

Friend is only in the work-related activity group for ESA, and gets summoned to the job centre at least 4 times a year, where they try and make her go on courses to get "work-ready". No amount of pointing out to them that she is the full-time carer for her disabled son seems to sink in.

My DIL is single parent to an 8YO and was working 32 hours pw at a bit over NMW as a TA in term time. The way the work coach averaged it out, they made it less than NMW x 30 hours pw over a full year and were hassling her to work more hours. The school were really supportive, and she's now doing some hours as an HLTA and the majority of her hours as an ELSA. That brings her average earnings up to over 30 x NMW whichever way you calculate it, so they leave her alone now.

This is a bizarre post.

It isn't 85% it's up to 85%!

Do you really think that someone with a combined income like yours is going to get the same as a single parent on minimum wage?

It was never going to hurt to apply. You would have either had a yes or no. You chose not to just because you thought you wouldn’t be entitled. UC actually benefits workers.

I don't have housing costs, so that is probably why.

Well it’s down to you to check, you should be annoyed with yourself. I’m amazed you are able to get this though as I am a single parent, I earn 19k a year and I get 85% of my childcare costs plus about £200 extra. All in all it covers all of my child care cost, thank god as I wouldn’t be able to afford it otherwise. So I am extremely grateful for our benefits system. If you earn 4k a month it’s seems odd you would get the same help as me, I would advise re-checking.

I didn’t know about tax free childcare so lost out on 4k over 2 years. Very annoying and feel your pain