Carers allowance and earning over £102 (now £110) per week.

[Loraine_16111]

I am a bit confused are you saying anything I pay for respite for me as I work 24 hrs a week and earn to much.i go to the gym which I pay for I also look after my daughter she comes gym with me as I look after her .

[susieq]

I am a bit confused are you saying anything I pay for respite for me as I work 24 hrs a week and earn to much.i go to the gym which I pay for I also look after my daughter she comes gym with me as I look after her .

No, not respite for you but respite for the people you care for. If your daughter goes to a fee paying after school club (or has to pay to use the gym alongside you) or your partner attends a fee paying day centre for example you can deduct these expenses; but the main (and most useful) deduction is payment into a pension plan - if in doubt speak to the Carers UK Adviceline team for the exact figures.

0808 808 7777
advice@carersuk.org
Open Monday to Friday, 10am to 4pm

if you can't get through on the phone then email them your query and they will back to you, usually within 3-5 days.

[Scally]

Yes, get some good advice.
I was like you once: didn't even claim CA because I had an occupational pension worth over £110 per week. Then the penny dropped: occupational pensions count as unearned income, not earnings, and therefore do not have to be declared as income for Carers Allowance purposes. Sure, I was a mug, but I wasn't the first one, and I won't be the last.
So after that I started to investigate Carers Allowance a bit more carefully, and found out that I can earn almost as much as I like, and still get it, as long as I understand how to navigate the labyrinth of silly rules.

Honestly, Monty Python might have made them up, they are utterly absurd.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iV2ViNJFZC8

[Malcolm_16111]

Hello all,
could really do with some advice on this topic.

I recently registered as as carer to my son. I am working one day per week and being paid monthly but the Local Authority took some time processing wages etc so my first wage came late and i was paid for six weeks. Next months pay included some holiday pay which took me to over the limit but this will be a one off.

I have now talked with personnel and have sussed out how to control monthly pay and had I been paid on time my first wage would have been well below the £476 limit. From now on all my monthly wages will be below the limit although each one will differ. Also I will not be paid for most of the summer months (Teacher).

Has anyone been assessed over a full year? I have contacted DWP and they have frozen payments and sent out a form which I will need to be careful. Also will that one month overpay scupper me even though all the others will be below limit and zero summer earnings?

Bit of a ramble I know....

[bowlingbun]

Malcolm, I'm sure Scally will be along later (he tends to be a forum Night Owl! I lost out on thousands as I didn't know how the rules worked, just wish I'd known about the forum then.

[susieq]

Hello Malcolm

I suggest that you contact the Carers UK Adviceline team as they the experts on all matters related to caring and benefits.

Need expert advice? You can talk to the Carers UK Adviceline five days a week, no matter where you are in the UK or how complex your query is. We do benefits checks and advise on financial and practical matters related to caring.

0808 808 7777
advice@carersuk.org
Open Monday to Friday, 10am to 4pm

The Carers UK Adviceline also includes a listening service, there for you to talk through your caring situation with a trained volunteer who understands what you are going through. Available Mondays and Tuesdays, from 9am to 7pm.

If you can’t get through on the phones (lines are often oversubscribed) then send them an email, they’ll usually get back to you within 3-5 working days.

You could also take a look here:
http://www.carersuk.org/help-and-advice ... -allowance
the Carers UK Factsheet on Carers Allowance, they give various scenario's on how to avoid the 'trap'of being slightly over the threshold limit.

[Malcolm_16111]

Malcolm, I'm sure Scally will be along later (he tends to be a forum Night Owl! I lost out on thousands as I didn't know how the rules worked, just wish I'd known about the forum then.

Yes, I am also being nailed for a well intentioned decision taken on my son's behalf which looks like costing him a few thousand. This is the sort of grief we could all do without I'm sure.

[Malcolm_16111]

Hello Malcolm

I suggest that you contact the Carers UK Adviceline team as they the experts on all matters related to caring and benefits.

Need expert advice? You can talk to the Carers UK Adviceline five days a week, no matter where you are in the UK or how complex your query is. We do benefits checks and advise on financial and practical matters related to caring.

0808 808 7777
advice@carersuk.org
Open Monday to Friday, 10am to 4pm

The Carers UK Adviceline also includes a listening service, there for you to talk through your caring situation with a trained volunteer who understands what you are going through. Available Mondays and Tuesdays, from 9am to 7pm.

If you can’t get through on the phones (lines are often oversubscribed) then send them an email, they’ll usually get back to you within 3-5 working days.


You could also take a look here:
http://www.carersuk.org/help-and-advice ... -allowance
the Carers UK Factsheet on Carers Allowance, they give various scenario's on how to avoid the 'trap'of being slightly over the threshold limit.

Thanks susie. I actually phoned the Adviceline and after a quick check with a colleague I was advised to contact DWP. That's when payments were suspended and a form arrived.

[Scally]

The best thing to do is get all the advice you can, and just figure it all out.
Yes, most folk can claim both carers allowance and work, as long as they do their sums right. It is good fun trying ... because the system is as full of legally exploitable holes as a Swiss Cheese.

[Malcolm_16111]

Building a case that hopefully satisfies the criteria. I received a helpful email from carersuk adviceline and talked on the phone with a nice man from the Carers Unit of DWP who came across as being sympathetic and not the usual inflexible Civil Servant type.
Interesting as you say Scally that there are many areas that can be used in your favour that I never realised, in particular my personal pension and the unpaid work I do at home and costs of providing external care.