Post by Iainhttp://www.chorley-guardian.co.uk/chorley/37k-benefits-mum-calls-for....
Has anyone any idea of how she can claim this much?
uk.gov.social-security added
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Iain
If you go to the entitled to site, you can calculate benefits. I think
I have got it right but it is late and I am tired. But here goes.
Working on the ages of her children and assuming rent is £1000 per
month all met by HB and council tax £1000 per year, then the following
weekly amount comes out:
Child Tax Credits £197-68
Income support £93-45
Council Tax Ben £19-17
Housing benefit £233-33
Child Benefit £60-50
and that comes to £604-13 which is £31,414 per year.
If she also gets DLA at the higher rate on both components, then she
would get £120 per week which would be £6240 per year.
Adding those up comes to £724-13 per week or £37,654.
Any incapacity benefit she gets would be deducted from the income
support, and if she gets more in IB than the IS above, the effect
would be minimal.
So her rent and council tax is probably a little less than the amounts
assumed.
And that is how the figure of about £37k is arrived at.
BUT....................
If she was not disabled, she would not get the DLA and the IS would be
at a lower rate. And she would get about £200 per week less. And that
would take it down to £524.
BUT....................
How does she compare with someoen working on £25k, all other things
being equal.
Suppose she was working on £25k per year gross. With the same rent and
council tax etc. What in-work and universal benefits would she get.
Gross income is £481 per week
Tax £71 per week
NI £41 per week
Net pay £369 per week
BUT
She would get the following in-work and universal benefits
Child Tax Credits £147-05 per week
Housing benefit £136-18 per week
Child Benefit £60-50 per week
making £343.73 per week.
And those benefits plus her take home pay comes to £712-73.
So...............
On benefits and not disabled she would be actually £188 per week worse
off then the net postion of someone earning £25k per year gross.
They have said that the proposed benefit cap will not apply to
disability benefits, so it looks like the cap won't affect her anyway.
Or will it?
The key issue therefore is this.
When the government say they will cap benefits to the net position of
a person on average salary. Do they mean the end result of someone
with the same housing costs, children etc. taking in-work bnefits into
account. Or are they going to compare someone like her with the net
salary of a single person who lives for free with their parents.