Hi all I have just recently been granted carers allowance. Is it true , that you can also get a free bus pass? As the person I care for lives a good distance away from me
Hi Robert … welcome to the forum.
One of my " Favourite " subjects :
( One more to add to the 24,000+ views ??? )
In short , possibly … a few LAs issue free bus passes to carers … a real post code lottery … best to check out the web site of
your own LA.
If you draw an ace high flush with the first 5 dealt , let us know ?
The odds of being within an LA that does are about the same.
I have been caring for a friend for well over a year plus I didn’t even know there was such a thing as carers allowance. I got it backdated for 3 months but people have said you can actually get it backdated further. Is this true?
Nope :
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Backdating. If you were entitled to Carer’s Allowance before the date you claimed it, you can ask for it to be backdated for up to three months.
If getting Carer’s Allowance means you can get a means-tested benefit because you qualify for carer premium, you should claim the benefit when you claim Carer’s Allowance.
Robert, if you tell us a bit more about your caring situation, we might be able to suggest ways of improving your situation, especially financially.
Have you had a Carers Assessment from Social Services, to see if there is anything they can help you with - they might, for example, be able to help with the cost of bus fares.
Has the person you care for had a Needs Assessment from Social Services? This would look at his/her needs and see if they could help there, too.
Don’t confuse these with benefit entitlement, totally different.
Some areas do offer Carers bus passes but they can only be used when accompaying the caree. Ie whe you are performjng your caring role. Whe you are not with your caree you become ‘normal’. Its not linked to income but to the duties being performed
Hi thanks a lot for getting back to me. My friend suffers bad from schizophrenia and has been a serial self harmer but I am to say since I have been caring for her, which has be she ince January,not the one just past but Jan 2018. Which I am really proud of her as she’s doing better than what she has done the last 20 odd years.
I was completely unaware of such support and it was only after I submitted the claim and read on some of the forums that in certain case they would backdated it further than the 3 months but when I spoke with DWP they said I should put it writing why only now have we decided to claim for carers allowance but as I said I didn’t even know you could. The bus pass thing makes sense but im confused by the
Means tested benefit? I am on universal credit
UC ?
Means tested ?
The various benefits that are included within UC :
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Universal Credit is a means-tested benefit for people of working-age who are on a low income.
It replaces six existing means-tested benefits:
Income Support.
Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance.
Income-related Employment and Support Allowance.
Housing Benefit.
Child Tax Credit.
Working Tax Credit.
The above six benefits are also known as legacy benefits.
Universal Credit is paid on a monthly basis. How much money you will get is worked out in two steps. First the DWP works out what it thinks you should need to live on, based on your household’s circumstances. Next it takes away some of the income you have coming in.
If SOLELY claiming Carers Allowance , UC would not be appicable.
" Carers Allowance " under UC becomes complicated :
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Additional Elements of Universal Credit (UC)
Carer’s Element
You can get this addition of £160.20 per month if you are caring for a severely disabled person for at least 35 hours a week. You do not have to claim Carer’s Allowance to get this element.
Unlike Carer’s Allowance where you are prevented from claiming if you are earning above a certain level (£123pw for 2019/20), for the Carer’s Element your level of earnings does not prevent you from claiming. However, as the Carer’s Element is a part of Universal Credit (UC), which is means-tested, your earnings and other income will affect whether you can get this and how much Universal Credit you are entitled to.
If you are making a joint claim, you can get a Carer’s Element each if you both qualify for it. However, you cannot be caring for the same severely disabled person.
Getting the Carer’s Element of Universal Credit might affect the benefits of the person you care for. It might mean they lose their entitlement to the Severe Disability Premium.