UC, inheritance and car purchase

[T1igerfeet]

I am currently on UC (been on it for 2.5y, will be getting back to work next year when youngest child is 2, on way to 3yo).
I will have some inheritance coming at some point, not sure how much but likely in the region of £40-45k so obv my UC claim will close.
I have approx £6k debt currently under a DRO which I will have to pay off.
I have an old car which is broken, to say the least. Breaks down so much that my breakdown cover have previously asked to see proof that I’d taken it to a garage, which I had of course. Plus it has numerous issues which are just ongoing.
I need a car as I live in a little village, children go to playgroup in a different location, oldest child will start school next year elsewhere which will be a 1.5hr, 2 bus journey to get to by public transport. I also provide some care for my elderly mum who has significant health and mobility issues (I’m not her official carer as I don’t do enough hours each week but she wouldn’t leave the house if it wasn’t for me taking her to medical appts, plus I do jobs which she is simply unable to do).
I need a slightly larger car as I have 2 bulky rear facing car seats and also my mum can’t get in/out of a standard car without significant difficulty due to them being too low. She also needs space to straighten her leg to try and minimise her constant pain.
When I return to work next year, I will be returning to my previous field of work, prob 2/3 of my previous jobs have had a requirement for travel, which of course needs reliable transport.
Ive started looking around at cars to get an idea and to get an SUV several years old which would suit my needs and also (hopefully) spend more time on the road than at the garage, I’d be looking to spend approx £15k ish, as a rough est. Will obv keep as low as possible. I’d part x my current car but wouldn’t anticipate getting more than £1-2k for it.
Ive asked on some fb UC groups and people seem to think £4k would get a decent, reliable car that will last and that I’d be depriving myself of capital to spend £13-14 (after part x). I really don’t want to go from one unreliable, stressful banger to another. Some of the people even seem to think I’m some sort of criminal looking to exploit the system, which I most certainly am not, hence why I’m trying so hard to clarify where I stand. I can’t find any clear guidance from UC. I don’t need much else, my fridge freezer is over 10yo and makes random funny noises so I’d like to replace that before I lose a freezer of food, my daughter has nearly outgrown her toddler bed so I need to get her a single bed and my mattress is nearly 10yo and very uncomfortable so I’d like to replace that but none of those will be anything fancy so my question really is about what’s reasonable for a family car that will last (I’m a single parent of 2 so even when I go back to work, I won’t have money to spare to replace a car so I need it to last me a long time).
is anyone able to shed any light please or does anyone have any personal experience of this sort of situation?
thanks

I’m confused as to what you’re asking, are you wanting to get the inheritance buy a car and all the things you need and hope they don’t stop UC because you won’t have the money in the bank to take you over the savings limit?

A relative in a similar position (but much smaller inheritance) wasn't buying a car, but asking what he was allowed to buy as there were household items etc. he wanted to replace. He found citizens' advice helpful and also tried an independent benefits advisory service (not sure if you have any locally, but perhaps a single parent one if you're single or carers uk (I don't think you need to be doing carer activities for a set number of hours to access support and advice from them, as the definition of "carer" by hours performed is just for the purpose of benefits calculations).

I think, from when I looked into it for my relative, you might be asked to prove you needed to spend the money, so possibly a report from the garage and m.o.t. would be useful.

I know nothing about cars, though, sorry I can't be more helpful.

No, the u.c. will be stopped anyway if OP receives the inheritance. The issue is that you're not allowed to reapply for benefits once you've lived off the inheritance money, unless you're deemed to have spent the money only on what's considered reasonable.

However, there aren't very clear guidelines on what's "reasonable" as, obviously, it really depends on individual situations. Therefore, it helps to be sure you can show a big spend like a new car was necessary.

OP is asking if there's a less expensive type of car that would cover her needs, which are very specific due to her circumstances, including work, children and elderly mother.

How do they work this out ? Is it a set amount per household member and depends on how much inheritance and they let you know how long it should last ?

So she can keep more money in the bank to live on? I get it now lol.

I’d just spend on the car tbh, sounds like you’ve had a crap time with the current car so if your going to the expense of a new car just get a more reliable one even if that means more money

So my UC will stop when I receive the inheritance, which is fine.
im not necessarily asking if there’s a cheaper option car wise, more as to how do I know what’s a reasonable amount to spend. The uc guidance is so ambiguous. Obv I’m not wanting to go out and buy a brand new sports car or anything but I do have specific requirements which a car has to fit and I do ideally need something that will last a good amount of years.
so what I’m asking is if I spent £13-14k on a car, live off the inheritance for a time which is fine but fell within the £16k threshold after several months (I don’t have an extravagant lifestyle and that won’t change), are they likely to deem me as depriving myself of capital? I don’t know how I’m supposed to know when they don’t tell you until after you’ve done something 🤷🏻‍♀️
I have sent a journal message to my work coach but given past experience, I’m not optimistic of getting any clarity.

It’s really upset me today, being made to feel on FB UC groups that I’m abusing the system for wanting to relieve myself and my family of the constant pressure worrying if the car is going to break down every time I get in it. I’m 42, I’ve always worked full time, except for the last 2.5y since having my children. This is the first time I’m my life I’ve claimed anything. I’m a single mum and will be returning to work before my youngest child turns 3. I shoulder everything by myself and a better car would make such a difference to my life. But now I’m worrying that UC will penalise me for it and I’d end up having to sell a car to keep a roof over my kids heads.

It's really difficult, how little guidance they provide on their rules.

I think, though, that even if they did consider it unnecessary spending, they dock the amount of u.c. they give you, rather than refuse it altogether? I'd definitely check with Citizens' Advice for more clarity.

I think they would refuse to give UC until they counted down to what time they think it should have taken me to get under the £16k. Or that’s my understanding anyway,
I have sent an email communication to CA but just trying to gather as many experiences, etc as I can to gage whilst I’m waiting to hear from them

A few things going on here. Firstly, and nothing to do with the car: OP, when you say you’re going to receive this inheritance, is it going through the probably process or is the person still alive? Check when your DRO expires, because if you don’t inherit until that’s expired then you probably won’t have to pay off the debt.

Secondly, yes you can absolutely get a reliable car for £4k. (By the way, if you buy a we for more than £4k before your DRO has expired it might invalidate the DRO). Reliability is a function of maintainance as much as anything. Buy a car which has been well maintained, continue to maintain it well yourself, and it will be more reliable than 3y.o. car which never has its oil changed.

Here’s a suggestion: there’s a forum called Pistonheads which is like mumsnet for (mostly male) car enthusiasts. It also has a big car classifieds site. Go on there and ask them to suggest you a reliable, large-ish car for £4k in your general area. You’ll probably get lots of help and links to specific adverts.

I’ve been looking at cars. £4,000 will not get you a decent car. You need a reliable car.x

Paying off debts, whether in a DRO or elsewhere is allowed; it's not seen as wilful deprivation.

As regards a car it's a question of what is reasonable. If you were working and earning would you spend £10-15k for a 3-4 year old car from, say, a franchised dealer? I know I would.

When DWP are looking at whether you've deprived yourself the key thing is intent; did you spend money so as to obtain/retain benefit or more benefit. Yes, they will look at whether spending is 'reasonable' so if you sunk the entire £40k into a sports car they'd be asking difficult questions. £10k on a 4 year old Skoda Fabia; probably not.

The inheritance is coming from the sale of a property which is sold and going through the relevant process to complete the sale. So unless it falls through, I will receive the money before the end of my DRO.
it is my understanding that if my circumstances change before the end of the DRO, I need to tell them and pay back the debt which is understandable and of course fine and this will be the second thing I do when I receive the money, after informing UC,
I take the point about maintenance of a car and whilst I agree to a degree, older cars do generally have more go wrong with them from wear and tear and the repair bills plus the inconvenience of being without a car whilst it’s at the garage being fixed causes difficulties. I got my current car 3 years ago with a fsh and have had nothing but trouble with it and it’s not just things that would be addressed with servicing etc (admittedly I dropped really unlucky with it as I agree other cars the same age won’t necessarily have as many issues as mine)

Surely it will take a while for the estate accounts to be finalised and the money distributed.
Why can't you bring your RTW date forward?
Plan for the new year?

Probate is already complete so I’m thinking once the sale completes, it probably won’t take too long to finalise things. Although I’ve never been through this before and I’m not an executor so I’m not involved with sorting it so I may be totally wrong.
im waiting on childcare for rtw, limited where i live. Have a place booked but my youngest is too young to attend atm

Following your thread as we have a very similar question. We need to replace our car and also are looking to pay off our mortgage. The money we have is from a critical illness payout when my husband was seriously ill 3 years ago. We didn't pay off the mortgage at the time as we had just taken out a 5 year deal. From November we can pay it off for a lesser penalty.
Our car is due through mot in October and we've already been told that at 100k on the clock, our car will need a fair bit of work to keep it roadworthy and at that there are no guarantees of reliability. We have children with additional support needs and my husband needs the car for work. Our current car was a year old when we purchased it and we are looking to buy something 1-2 years old again to last a while.
We are on a year's protected capital so over 16k is protected meantime. With what we plan to use, we would be left with around 10k in savings.
I've been told by a welfare officer that it should be fine with receipts, etc but have seen conflicting information elsewhere.
These are things we would be planning to do either way.

Paying off 'proper' debt, like a mortgage, even if it's not due yet, is never seen as deprivation in Universal Credit: UC Regs 2013 Para 55(2)(a). Loans from family can be problematic if DWP think it's a 'put up job' but not mortgages, credit cards etc.

Other spending must be reasonable in the circumstances. Para55(2)(b).

There is no catalogue of what's reasonable; it's fact dependent. If you live in a place where you need a car and/or your household and lifestyle mean you need one (you mention work and an SEN child) then spending a reasonable sum on replacing a car that's 'shot' should pass muster.

Managed migration and protection for capital over £16k is new stuff for the DWP and we don't know for certain how close a rule they will run over spending during the disregard period. However the principles above still apply.

What about a Dacia Duster?

You just need to keep invoices and be able to show the transactions in case UC ask.

Hi OP. I inherited £17000 last year. The estate was my uncles and I needed a new car badly. I live and work rurally in Peak District. I ended up buying my uncles car and took a smaller inheritance if £12k. I declared it to UC and they adjusted my claim. From that I paid off some credit card debt and helped my kids out. Stuck the rest in a savings account. I journaled that I had done this to uc and they said to send an updated bank balance. I left it for months for reasons I'm not sure about. I didn't know how to prove why I had so much credit card debt. Eventually I had to update my claim as normal and put down my actual bank balance and they readjusted my claim. It was that simple.

Point I'm trying to make is that this situation is incredibly common and the lack of clarity surrounding the rules means that as long as you are truthful then it should be ok. Nothing you are doing is outside the rules. I found citizens advice incredibly helpful about this.

op I’m not an expert on the rules but given your outline I would spend more than 4K on a car. I spent 15k 8 years ago on a second hand (3 years old) car which would have been 25k new. I’ve already had 8 years motoring, and other than replacing tyres, brake discs etc, it seems in good working order with good reviews from other owners. I genuinely expect at least another 5 years life out of it, possibly longer. I agree on looking at piston heads for guidance on best bang for your buck.

In terms of UC, maybe aim for something in the 10-15k range. That would be a very sensible amount for someone to spend on a car without taking on finance etc. I can see why the rules exist - but a standard good condition second hand car is hardly depriving yourself of assets.

Thank you all for your experience, tips and advice. It’s really helped. I have reached out to my work coach although no reply yet and I suspect they wouldn’t give any clarification. But I have also contacted citizens advice and am awaiting an email. I will check out the piston heads site re car advice too.

You need to do research into what is and isn't classed as deprivation of assets.

Reasonable expenses are allowed. Replacement car/white goods, paying off debts. But be careful to compare with actual legal cases not just rumours online. Go to CAB for advice.

The best thing to do with the money is a house deposit. This will not count as deprivation of assets and you keep your full UC.

My car went bang 2yrs ago. I wasn't looking to change it till had no choice

Looked around and tbh I struggled to find a car that was 10yrs old for less then £5k

In the end I took out a small loan from dad (and I paid it back within the year) and ended up spending £8500 on a car

That got me an asx 2016 so was 6yrs old

It was worth spending more to have a car that I knew was reliable

Had a big boot. Could fit in 2 /swivel large car seats in back

What I am saying is you def need to spend more than £4k to get a decent car with fsh but prob don't need to spend £14/16k

That is deprivation of asserts

What's reasonable depends on needs. If you've got people with mobility problems short of those justifying a Motability car or kids with SEN you need a car that's big enough for the job.

The Skoda Octavia estate is well regarded in it's class but you're soon in the £10-12k area...

It would come down to a decision maker deciding whether spending 15k on a second hand car is reasonable spending or not. I've personally never spent that much on a car in my life but everyone is different. It's one of those things where no-one can really tell you the answer. By the time you are able to reclaim UC you'll likely be back at work anyway won't you so may not qualify then anyway ?