Universal Credit should relax £16,000 savings eligibility rule

[DreamChaser23]

do you agree? This is to ensure other workers who were laid off and have 16k OR higher in savings should also be eligible for help.

www.google.com/amp/s/www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/dwp-must-change-universal-credit-21792760.amp

@Hester54

how can i care for people i don't know and have never met

You sound properly sociopathic.

If your are saving for a car why not just use your savings & buy said car & then claim UC?

I think maybe they should raise the savings threshold a little temporarily as 16k isn't really a lot. However if someone has above 40k in the bank it wont hurt them to use a bit. The problem is with Uc is that it isn't just savings, it includes capital like a second home, stocks and shares, premium bonds which may not be immediately accessible so you are a bit stuffed if all your assets aren't accessible.

If I had £16k of savings (or any amount that I can access) I would expect to use that first. In actual fact we have very little savings due to having a baby last year and me currently being off on maternity leave.

But as previously said the £16k rule accounts to equity in a rental property. We have an accidental one (from when we moved in together). In normal circumstances of unexpected financial hardship we’d look to sell it. Even in a recession we’d expect to be able to do this, albeit for a lower value. As it stands the housing market is at a standstill. So we can not access that money yet can not access UC. So have two mortgages to pay, plus bills and zero income and zero rent.

so now what?!

Why aren't PAYE asked to use their savings?

How can u care about people you don't know and have never met
Hello to the sociopath on the thread.
Jesus fuckin wept 😡

I only have sympathy for those who were saving for a house deposit who will need much more than £16K. A wedding, car, holiday, all these can still be afforded under £16K. This is why there is a £16K threshold and that's more than enough for reasonable spend.

I do think that there should be an exception for those who could evidence that the money was to save for a house deposit. Not sure how you could evidence that though, unless the monthly deposit are earmarked 'house deposit'.

JKScot4 i might care for them once i met them,

@dontdisturbmenow
Are you serious?
The tax payers are to pay you benefits to protect your house deposit?
You do know there are ppl who can’t pay their rent never mind save a deposit?
Tough shit, you’ll need to save longer.
Easy to spot the Tory voters here.

Why aren't PAYE asked to use their savings?

How do you make that leap? Are you assuming that everyone on PAYE earns 30k maximum?

It's tricky if you buy a car with your savings once you put your claim in, or if you knew redundancy was coming and did it then. Deliberate deprivation of assets. Different rules for house purchases I think but it's been ages since I looked it all up. I really feel for people suddenly thrown into this. We've only had a month or so to anticipate this event, not long enough to prepare.

That's funny @Hester54 cause you posted this in January

Work 8-5 leave home 7-50 walk to work, home by 5-10,
I earn less but have an easier life, it’s not all about the money, quality of life is more important sometimes

@DeathGrip People aren't intended to live off Carer's Allowance alone.

JKScot4 surly it should not be about how much you have manged to save, but how much you have been earning, you make it sound like nobody should have savings,

Bunch of hypocrites are now concerned they won't have an income and suddenly see the value in the benefits systems. If anything, the benefit amounts should be upped for everyone on the poverty line on UC now, who don't have savings. Those of you with 16k+ can bloody use it! So selfish.

I don't think it's relevant how/why people have £16,000 or more in savings, or what they intended to do with it. What's relevant is that the cap is there & at the rate that's been set. The logic of "but if I spend that to live on I won't be able to do x, y, z" arises from a purely personal view of life that disregards public/national interest. The safety net being provided is intended to enable people to eat & pay essential bills, not to maintain bank accounts at a certain level.

Of course ... house purchases are pretty much frozen and if you did buy then there will be immediate depreciation so possibly money lost anyway
Things are really screwed. And this is only the beginning.

I do think that there should be an exception for those who could evidence that the money was to save for a house deposit.

If it’s in a help to save ISA or lifetime ISA perhaps they could make an exception since those can only be used for a first time buy or for a pension in the case of LISA - that’s something they could consider, but to do so now just because lots of comparatively well off people need benefits when they’ve let everyone else suffer for years would be quite a cynical move even for this government.

14:57Hester54

mrshoho sorry that i think about looking after myself and my family and try and keep our heads above water, i didnt worry about China and co_vid 19 until recently, but now its affecting my family i take notice, im sure you had an interest in it a few yours ago

That's the thing Hester, I was concerned about Covid-19 when it was only affecting China. I watched the news and remember posting on threads here sending my thoughts to the people suffering over there. Believe it or not more people than not do care about social issues both here on our doorstep and globally.

In normal circumstances of unexpected financial hardship we’d look to sell it. Even in a recession we’d expect to be able to do this, albeit for a lower value. As it stands the housing market is at a standstill. So we can not access that money yet can not access UC. So have two mortgages to pay, plus bills and zero income and zero rent.

Playing devils advocate though did you make money off it pre virus? If not why not sell it before? Does it have a mortgage? My dad who no longer lives here still has a flat, he rents it out for holidays/weekends. Most of the money "made" just covers the running of it, the rest goes into a rainy day fund.

esjee so your suggesting that people that have not or don't want to work should get more than those who chose to work until recently, now no thought of their own, they lose their job,
you can see who votes labour

^People aren't intended to live off Carer's Allowance alone.*

That’s irrelevant. It’s an income replacement element, like all the other income replacement elements. Depending on household income you could qualify for other elements of UC just like those on CA.

you can see who votes labour

Whereas the selfish, fraudulent posters who vote Tory are really hard to spot, eh?

mrshoho i try to care about things that i can control

Deathgrip more of a Green myself