Saying they are poor but they are not?

[Orangesandlemons77]

I keep getting told by elderly MIL how poor she is 'on the breadline' but she really is not.

She owns her own house, gets her state pension and her husbands from when he was employed, then also gets attendance allowance, which adds up to quite a bit.

Bit she keeps going on about every penny and how much things cost, the winter fuel allowance etc - she has quite a bit more than we do and we need to budget for four.

Anyone else got this? What is it about I wonder?

But hearing someone go on and on and on about the same thing is pretty bloody tedious.

There's only so much sympathy i can muster.

I think the recent high inflation rises have panicked many. I know I find it hard to countenance when the cost of basic items seem to have doubled in a year. Technically I know we can still afford it, but it is worrying.

It must be harder for older folk who will remember when things cost a lot less. We haven't been out with my DPs since 2020, but I remember my DF calling out that the price of sausage and chips was outrageous at a mere £9.99. Bearing in mind that they have a net worth of just over a million and generous pensions, they could easily afford it.

You only need to have difficulties with daily living activities/ personal care several times a day or night to qualify. In my experience it's given out very easily to most who apply as long as you send in a couple of medical letters. It's very rare that anyone ever checks up what care is being given. So many older people get it and it then qualifies them to so much more in the way of benefits. Honestly the amounts of money I see a lot of these pensioners getting and they still plead poverty. Absolutely baffling. When I come to do benefits checks for people, half of them have been getting AA for years and don't even know they are getting it and some can't even say why they are getting it ! We get loads ringing in and asking to claim AA ( " martin Lewis says pensioners can claim and extra £4k a year " !! ) then it turns out they have already been claiming it for years. Goodness knows where they think that £108 a week has been coming from ! I do appreciate they are on a fixed income and they fret about heating costs but really many of them have a higher income than I do and no housing costs.

I filled in the forms for DM and she gets the full weekly amount of just over £100.
I was partly doing it to encourage her to get a cleaner as I really don't want to have to do it - work full time and live an hour away - but no despite her osteoporosis and macular degeneration she says she will struggle on and I will continue to feel guilty if I don't do it and resentful, angry and exhausted if I do.

Meanwhile DF used the backdated lump sum to buy a new TV .

Sorry this does sound like I'm moaning about my clients - I know I need a new job before anyone says anything. It is on my list for the new year ! Like op it just baffles me when people are getting so much and plead poverty.

This! For about two years my DF was delighted with his extra £400 a month that he was splashing around on my nephews etc and then he was pissed off that he had to pay £25 an hour for two hours a week care (well why can't your mum just do it) and then I made him pay an extra £25 a week for a cleaner - it's what the money was for you bozo!

And the winter fuel allowance, ugh...I am a bit miffed about the tv licence fee given for a lot of older people it can be their only company but while they are paying £115 a month for sky (yes, £115, that doesn't include broadband or anything else, just a ton of sport and films etc) I actually think they can carry on coughing up for it just fine!

I know my mum and dad worked hard (we were properly skint until I was about 14) to get what they have now but they do seem to have some kind of misconception that they should be getting more from the govt...like they aren't aware there's a spending crisis going on.

The past few months I ( through my work) have had to listen for 8 hours a day to pensioners ranting about loss of WFP ( even when they are loaded), illegal immigrants taking all the money ( had to put the phone down on one just before Xmas), how they should be getting more government money even when they are getting large amounts already , how they shouldn't have to pay for care from their AA etc. I'm totally done with it.