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

Mine are child benefit I've saved for 17 years for DD's university / house deposit.

See but I can then complain that this is unfair as child benefit used to be a universal benefit but changed in 2013 to means tested so my dc have never qualified for it.

Peppafrig if we are on the same wage, I have savings they don't, who's fault is that?

No. The savings are for emergencies. If you have more than £16k put away you should be able to pay some of your own costs. I'm saying that as someone who has been affected by savings thresholds. Benefits are for those in need.

Deathgrip so the person who has been prudent gets penalised and the other gets rewarded, seems odd, very odd, should the government make you have a proportion of your wages paid directly into a savings scheme?

Such a bizarre perspective.

Savers aren’t being penalised. They’re just not being given money because they don’t need money. Should their savings fall below the very generous threshold, they’ll be entitled to financial help.

Again, if it’s such a great position to be in, blow your savings on a big purchase now and then rely on UC for the next six months.

I hope that everyone who thinks the £16k savings rule is fair will be releasing any equity in their house before claiming universal credit?

Wow! And people thought this would bring the nation together. This situation will drive the entire country apart much further than ever. I predict that people made temporarily unemployed by the virus will be even more hostile to those subsisting on benefits on a permanent basis. Also there'll be decades of austerity to follow to pay for all of this. The squeezed middle will pay as usual while very little will change at all for those who live off the state or the very rich.

The issue will be the difference between those on UC and TC.

Also these are not normal circumstances as generally if made unemployed you have at least a small chance of getting another job.
Currently there are few jobs and probably lots of people who can't risk working in a supermarket due to existing health issues.

Should the government make people pay a percentage of their wages into savings.

Omg you can not be serious with this comment and shows that you have no idea how much people struggle. You know that some families that both work literally have £5 left at the end of week .

Mine are child benefit I've saved for 17 years for DD's university / house deposit

Yeah. It sucks. But what sucks more is being able to buy food, heat your home, have electricity. Stuff like that.

Lots of peoples savings will be depleted. It’s shit, but the global economy is fucked. Things are going to change, massively.

AltogetherNo some people on min wage may have savings or has inherited a little bit of money, why should they not get help as well, before they return to their job, hopfully,

Absolutely not. If you have 16k, you don’t need UC. If you don’t think 16k is a lot then you need perspective. That’s more than a lot of people earn a year.

Derbygerbil not at all, why would you look at the rules until you need help?

@Hester54
Because I care about the world beyond my privileged little bubble. It’s an appalling indictment of your apparent selfishness that you feel you have no need to be concerned in any way for how those less fortunate than you have been are treated by society.

AltogetherNo you could have a small inheritance from your parents

i wish i could afford to save child benefit for 17 years.

Mine are child benefit I've saved for 17 years for DD's university / house deposit
Sorry if it's too late for you but it would make a difference if you save this in the child's name rather than your own.

Derbygerbil I am ment to know all the ins and outs of everything, I have a hard enough time doing my 12 hr shifts, well used too

"Should the government make people pay a percentage of their wages into savings. "

Actually thats a really good idea, but they will not do it because its crap for the economy.

Do people who have more than £16k of savings have any idea how crass and out-of-touch their moaning is to those who have struggled all their lives to save 1% of that!

But there is an imbalance with the savings. Anyone who has managed to hang on to the their old style Working Tax Credits and hasn't yet been moved over to UC doesn't have to take savings into account. The savings part has only kicked in since they merged it all together into UC. Also ESA doesn't take savings into account. 80% furlough and 80% self-employed grant doesn't include savings (and for the self employed part of their savings at any given time could be to pay their tax bill). Many people now have savings rather than pensions. It's not that simple. Personally I think they should've dropped it, or at least made it £16k or above and dropped the lower level of savings.

Absolutely not. Benefits are for those in need and you're not in need with £16k in the bank. Ridiculous idea.