Universal Credit benefits – Disabled people will be ‘£300 a month worse off’ under system
Flaws in the Universal Credit system mean some disabled people will suffer financially
MILLIONS of disabled people could be as much as £300 worse off under Universal Credit, a new report has revealed.
The benefit is designed to help those in work and those unable to work but flaws in the system mean some disabled people could get less money than they previously did.
The government's welfare scheme, which rolls six payments into one, is designed to improve work incentives for those who are able to work. It also has a financial element to help those people who aren't able to work.
But Citizens Advice has outlined four situations in its report, which only looks at how single people are affected, whereby those who claim could be worse off.
The first relates to the “Work allowance” part of Universal Credit. This benefit can only be accessed if someone has a “Work Capacity Assessment” and these are not available to everyone.
The assessment is only available to people who are unable to work because they are disabled or have a health condition. But confusingly, people who are able to work will need to be assessed as 'not fit for work' in order to receive this support.
This could leave some more than £300 worse off when compared to the previous benefit - the Disabled Worker Element of Tax Credits.
Even working disabled people who successfully receive the Work Allowance could be more than £200 worse off, as the support given is not as generous as that offered by Tax Credits.
The amount people can claim if they are working limited hours, known as the "Limited Capacity to Work" is also changing.
Under the new system if a disabled person earns £46 a week - which is equivalent to around six hours a week at minimum wage - the amount of benefits they receive will be reduced. This is compared to £125.50 a week, or 16 hours, which people could previously earn before their benefits would fall.
Finally, those with a carer who are not able to work and make a claim could lose out by £180 a month. This is because the “Severe Disability Premium” no longer exists in the new system.
The charity is now calling on the government to make changes to make sure some disabled people aren’t penalised when claiming the benefit. It has identified four main points which need to be looked at.
These include, ensuring all working people who are disabled or have a health condition receive targeted in-work financial support.
Disabled people who only work a limited number of hours should also be allowed to trial part-time positions without facing a benefit penalty.
It also wants the government to remove the Limited Capacity for Work element and replace it with a personalised support package for people.
Finally it wants targeted financial support to be introduced for disabled people who live alone with an adult carer.
The charity did identify some elements of Universal Credit which have helped disabled people.
This includes removing the situation whereby people needed to switch between different benefits when their circumstances changed and they moved into work. It also said some people who are not able to work will be better off.
Gillian Guy, Chief Executive of Citizens Advice, said: “Some disabled people will be unfairly disadvantaged under Universal Credit.
“Working disabled people need to prove they are unfit to work to get support meant for them. This goes against the government’s aim to support a million disabled people into work.
“Even when disabled people do get the support meant for them under Universal Credit, whether they are in work or not, they can be hundreds of pounds worse off a month than the previous system. This is money people desperately need to cover their bills.
“The government needs to address this and increase the financial support disabled people can receive under Universal Credit.”
A spokesperson for the Department of Works and Pensions, said: “Universal Credit targets support to those that need it the most by helping those that can into work, and having the right care in place for those that can’t.
"Around 1 million disabled people will receive on average £110 more a month under UC. We have committed to transitional protection for people when they are moved from the old system onto UC, and this year we announced extra protection for those who had the Severe Disability Premium and have since moved to UC, and for those currently on SDP they will be allowed to stay on the old system until they are moved over.”
“As Citizen’s Advice acknowledges, Universal Credit provides additional support including for disabled people. For those who can work, UC offers a tailored system of support that is seeing people moving into work faster and staying in work longer than compared to the old benefits system.”
“We are spending over £50 billion a year to support disabled people and those with health conditions and this is set to rise every year of this Parliament.”
What to do if you have problems claiming Universal Credit
IF you're experiencing trouble applying for your Universal Credit, or the payments just don't cover costs, here are your options:
Apply for an advance - Claimants are able to get some cash within five days rather than waiting weeks for their first payment. But it's a loan which means the repayments will be automatically deducted from your future Universal Credit pay out.
Alternative Payment Arrangements- If you're falling behind on rent, you or your landlord may be able to apply for an APA which will get your payment sent directly to your landlord. You might also be able to change your payments to get them more frequently, or you can split the payments if you're part of a couple.
Budgeting Advance - You may be able to get help from the government to help with emergency household costs of up to £348 if you're single, £464 if you're part of a couple or £812 if you have children. These are only in cases like your cooker breaking down or for help getting a job. You'll have to repay the advance through your regular Universal Credit payments. You'll still have to repay the loan, even if you stop claiming for Universal Credit.
Cut your Council Tax - You might be able to get a discount on your Council Tax or be entitled to Discretionary Housing Payments if your payments aren't enough to cover your rent.
Foodbanks - If you're really hard up and struggling to buy food and toiletries, you can find your local foodbank who will provide you with help for free. You can find your nearest one on the
The system is set to roll out across the whole country next year, but recent predictions state that around 3.2 million people will be worse off when they’re moved onto it.
For those who do get it, we’ve looked into how to apply in advance, and the best alternatives available.
more on universal credit
Since it was first introduced in 2010 it has been plagued with problems and earlier this year we revealed the seven shocking ways the system was failing people.
Earlier this month, a family on Universal credit said they had been forced to resort to payday loans to pay for Christmas presents this year.
If the Chancellor uses next week’s budget to reverse £3 billion worth of cuts to the welfare budget, 400,000 people who receive the benefit could be better off.
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