Benefit Changes. Under-Occupation. Benefits Cap. Council Tax Support. Universal Credit. What you need to know

Transcription

1 Benefit Changes What you need to know Under-Occupation Benefits Cap Council Tax Support Universal Credit 1

2 Getting ready for the changes From April 2013 the Government will be making some big changes to the welfare benefit system. We know that many of you may be worried about what this could mean for you and your family. It is important that you take action to make sure that your rent and Council Tax is paid and you don t put your home at risk. This booklet will tell you: About the main changes How this might affect you What you can do to prepare Where to go for more help and advice You can also visit our website tunbridgewells.gov.uk for more information, or keep in touch with us on Contents Under-Occupation 3 Benefits Cap 7 Universal Credit 9 Council Tax Support 9 Where to get help 10 Useful contacts 12 If you require this leaflet in large print or audio CD please phone

3 Under-Occupation (Bedroom Tax) From April 2013 if you are of working age, in a housing association owned property and have one or more spare bedrooms, then your housing benefit may be reduced. You will be affected if: You are 16 to 61 years old You get any housing benefit, even if it s a small amount You are sick or disabled You won t be affected if: You live in a one bedroom flat or bedsit You or your partner is aged 61 years and 6 months or more on 31 March 2013 and claiming pension credit You are a Foster carer You have a child who is severely disabled and requires a separate room You part-own the property under a shared ownership lease When will these changes happen? April 2013 What is classed as a spare bedroom? The new rules mean that a bedroom will be classed as spare unless it is being used for one of the following purposes: An adult couple Any other person aged 16 or over Two children of the same sex under the age of 16 Two children under the age of ten regardless of their sex It does not matter how the spare bedroom is used, the new rules will apply even if: You and your partner need to sleep apart because of a medical condition Your children mainly live at another address, but you have a spare room for when they stay with you. 3

4 What if you or your partner has a disability? The only time that housing benefit may be paid for a spare bedroom due to you or your partner s disability is where: You have a carer who lives elsewhere, and You or your partner receive the middle or high rate care as part of the of disability living allowance and need overnight care, and The carer uses the extra bedroom to stay overnight on a regular basis to provide care for you or your partner Please contact the Gateway team for more information and advice on or benefits@tunbridgewells.gov.uk How much will you lose? If you have one spare bedroom your housing benefit will be cut by 14% of the rent you pay each week If you have two or more spare bedrooms your housing benefit will be cut by 25% of the rent you pay each week Where your benefit has been cut it will be up to you to pay the difference to stop you getting behind with your rent payments. If you have one or more spare bedrooms your housing benefit will be reduced 4

5 Matt is single, aged 35 and lives in a two bedroom flat where the rent is 75 a week. He lost his job recently and gets 75 a week housing benefit to cover his rent; this gets paid directly to his landlord. He has access to his daughter at weekends. Case One Under the new Government rules from April 2013 Matt will be living in a property larger than he needs as his daughter does not live with him full-time. Matt s rent for housing benefit will be reduced by a week, his landlord will only receive a week and he will have to pay the shortfall of to his landlord out of his Jobseeker s Allowance. Gail is a single parent with two teenage boys aged 13 and 15. She works part-time and gets a small amount of housing benefit to help her pay her rent of 90 a week. She lives in a three bedroom house. According to the Government from April 2013, Gail will be living in a property larger than she needs as her two sons are both under 16. Case Two Gail s rent for housing benefit will be reduced by a week and she will have to find this extra money for her rent out of her income. Case Three Tahir and Rahim both aged 55, live in a three bedroomed house. Their children have all grown up and left the family home. Their rent is 110 a week. Tahir has worked all his life but due to ill health he has had to give up work and now claims disability benefit. From April 2013, under the new rules, Tahir and Rahim will be living in a property larger than they need. Their rent for housing benefit will be reduced by a week and they will have to make up the difference and pay this to their landlord as well as the rent already due. Brenda is 66 years old and lives in a two bedroomed flat. As Brenda is not of working age she will not be affected by the bedroom tax and there will be no changes to her housing benefit entitlement. Case Four 5

6 Ways to prepare Make sure you are claiming all the benefits you are entitled to. If you are not sure visit the website or pop into the Tunbridge Wells Gateway to speak with one of our advisors Check your outgoings and see how you can manage with less money so that you can still pay your rent Benefit cuts may mean less money to pay your rent Think about how you ll pay the difference if your housing benefit is cut If you are working, is there an opportunity to increase your hours? If you have adult children or other adult household members, could they pay more towards your rent? Think about getting a lodger to use and pay for the spare room. Although it s important to check first to see if your tenancy agreement allows you to do this. It is important that you get advice before making any decisions as it might affect your benefits. Contact the Gateway team on or benefits@tunbridewells.gov.uk who will be happy to help If you would like to move to a smaller home. You could find someone to swap with or contact your landlord to find out about how to join Homechoice to apply for a transfer or try Locata Home Search to apply for mutual exchange). Either one of these options may take some time as there is no guarantee that a suitable property will be available You may need to move to a smaller home Help and support is available now if you need to discuss this with anyone. 6

7 Benefits Cap By October 2013 the Government plans to put a weekly limit on the total amount a household can receive in benefits. This is called the Benefits Cap. The cap will be set at: 500 per week for couples with or without children 500 per week for single parents 350 per week for single people The Government will add up how much money you get from the following benefits: Housing Benefit Jobseeker s Allowance Employment & Support Allowance (unless it includes the support component) Child Benefit Child Tax Credit Carers Allowance Income Support Maternity Allowance Incapacity Benefit Severe Disablement Allowance Guardian s Allowance Widowed Parent s Allowance Bereavement Allowance If the amounts you receive add up to more than the maximum amount you are allowed your housing benefit will be cut. As this amount is being taken from your housing benefit you will have to find the difference yourself to pay the rent. When will this happen? Between April October Who will be affected? The cap is only likely to affect a small number of households receiving benefits. You won t be affected if: You have reached pension age (61 years and six months before April 2013) You have been working for at least the last 12 months but have lost your job through no fault of your own (for example through redundancy), the benefits cap may not apply to your claim for the first nine months 7

8 You, your partner or children get a disability living allowance, personal independence payment, attendance allowance, constant attendance allowance, and the support component of employment and support allowance You or your partner is working enough hours to qualify for working tax credit (even if their income is too high to receive working tax credit) You receive a war pension Case Study Sheila and George currently get 454 a week in jobseeker s allowance, child benefit and child tax credit for themselves and their four children. They live in a housing association property where the rent is 90 a week and they currently receive 90 a week in housing benefit to help them pay for this. This means that their total benefit awards are 544 per week. So they will be affected by the benefit cap when it starts. At the moment their housing benefit is paid directly to their landlord on their behalf. They will continue to receive the 454 a week but their housing benefit will drop to 46 a week. This means that their landlord will only be sent 46 a week towards the rent of 90. Sheila and George will need to find 44 a week themselves out of their 454 benefits to pay the difference in their rent. Ways to prepare If you are worried that you might be affected by the benefits cap start thinking about how you will be able to cope, don t leave it until your rent is due You can find out if you will be affected online at or contact the Job Centre Start to budget now to make sure you are able to pay your rent so you don t get into arrears and risk losing your home Try to find work as this will give you more money and will also mean you might be able to get Working Tax Credit and not be affected by the total benefits cap Get some help and advice with managing your money or debts now. Our Gateway customer service advisors will be able to give you information about organisations that can help you get your debts and money under control 8

9 Universal Credit The Government wants to make the benefits system simpler. Only one claim will need to be made, and only one payment received. The payment will be monthly in arrears. Advice and support is available should you want advice on budgeting your money over the month. When will this happen? October 2013 for all new claims At some time between October for existing claims Who will be affected? Universal Credit will affect households of working age who claim in-work and out-of-work benefits, including Income Support, Income based Jobseeker s Allowance or Employment and Support Allowance, Housing Benefit, Child Tax Credit and Working Tax Credit. Council Tax Support Council Tax Benefit has ended. From April 2013, if you are of working age (16 61 years old) and claim Council Tax Support, the amount of support you receive may be cut. This is because the Government has decided that local councils will set the rules for how benefits are administered and they must make savings of around 10%. It is possible that you will no longer be entitled to full Council Tax Support in the future and you will have to pay and amount to the Council. When will this happen? April 2013 Who will be affected? Anyone between 16 and 61 years old Ways to prepare Contact Tunbridge Wells Gateway for more information on how these changes will affect you. 9

10 Where to get help If you are worried about any of the changes outlined in this booklet affecting you and not being able to afford to pay your rent from, you should ask for help and advice now. Contact Tunbridge Wells Gateway who will be able to talk to you about the benefit changes and help you make the best choices Contact your landlord to talk about ways to pay your rent We can also put you in touch with other organisations that can help you with budgeting and debt advice Tunbridge Wells Gateway, 8 Grosvenor Road, Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent TN1 2AB T: E: info@tunbridgewells.gov.uk Department for Work and Pensions If you are concerned about the benefits changes and how they will affect you, please call the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) helpline number , or textphone for people with hearing or speech impairments. Want to get into work? Talk to your local Jobcentre Plus about training and work opportunities. Thinking about moving home? Please contact your landlord about swapping (mutual exchange) or applying to transfer to a smaller home. 10

11 Worried about managing your money? For advice and help with debts contact the National Debt helpline on (nationaldebtline.co.uk) or Step Change Debt Charity on for free independent advice For financial advice go to moneyadviceservice.org.uk, or go to mymoneysteps.org to arrange a personal action plan Want to know what benefits you are entitled to? Make sure you are claiming all the benefits you can. For more information go to Contact the Gateway team to find out if you could get additional help from the council through a Discretionary Housing Payment [DHP]. We have a limited amount of money available to make discretionary payments towards housing costs. Priority may be given to those with a disability and your house has been adapted. Call or benefits@tunbridgewells.gov.uk Talk to your local Citizens Advice Bureau or Shelter for more advice 11

12 Useful contacts General advice Citizens Advice Bureau, Gateway, 8 Grosvenor Road, Royal Tunbridge Wells Monday to Friday 10am to 3pm. T: E: advice@twcab.cabnet.org.uk W: twcab.org.uk Paddock Wood Community Advice Centre, 64 Commercial Road, Paddock Wood. TN12 6DP T: E: info@pwadvice.org Shelter Kent Housing Aid, Bull Yard, High Street, Ashford TN24 8SN T: E: ashford@shelter.org.uk Housing Benefits and Council Tax Tunbridge Wells Borough Council, Gateway, 8 Grosvenor Road, Royal Tunbridge Wells T: E:benefits@tunbridgewells.gov.uk E: counciltax@tunbridgewells.gov.uk W: tunbridgewells.gov.uk T: Employment Tunbridge Wells Jobcentre Plus, 88 Grosvenor Road, Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent TN1 2AX Telephone: Textphone: Managing Money Money Advice Service for independent financial advice T: W: moneyadviceservice.co.uk Online benefit calculator entitledtofortenants.co.uk Debt Advice West Kent Debt Advice URC Church, 1 Mount Ephraim, Royal Tunbridge Wells TN4 8AE T: W: wkda.org.uk Step Change Debt Charity T: W: stepchange.org 12