Carers Allowance – in the dock
My dentist recently wrote to me advising I had not booked an appointment for some time. I then could not tell my mortgage provider who my building and contents insurer was, because I couldn’t find the policy document.
I am rather disorganised. Which is why I was attracted to Helen’s business proposal in the final programme of The Apprentice last Sunday. Her business would offer concierge /secretary type services for people – such as organising dentist appointments and storing information of who your insurer is.
This would be a dream for me, but can you imagine how helpful this would be for carers who can be responsible for all of the affairs of the person they are caring for, on top of everything else they are dealing with?
Carers are often lost amidst a myriad of social care, health and welfare systems as they try to figure out how best to get support for the person they care for. It is no surprise that something might slip through the net.
For some carers, what slipped was that some years after first receiving Carer’s Allowance, they did not tell the Carer’s Allowance Unit that they had begun to earn over £100 p/w which means they are no longer eligible for Carer’s Allowance.
In a recent discussion on our website forums, 16 carers advised that they were prosecuted by the Department of Work and Pensions for this error. Some of them had disclosed the income to the Tax Credits office but had not realised that they also had to tell the Carer’s Allowance Unit.
My dentist understood and found time for me; my mortgage provider laughed and said my insurance broker could tell me. The DWP took carers to court. In all of these cases, carers said they admitted their mistake and had offered or even started repayments yet DWP still pressed prosecution.
The effects were carers lived for months in fear of jail and what would happen to the person they were caring for. And fearing the loss of their jobs working in schools or with vulnerable adults. Or wondering where they could find the money to pay for a lawyer. One carer is now so scared that she refuses to claim Carer’s Allowance even though she is eligible, in case she makes another mistake and goes through the nightmare again.
All carers who went to court were found not guilty, and others had their cases dropped by the DWP but only after many months of fear. However, two carers are still being taken to court despite admitting their mistakes and starting repayments.
What has happened to these carers over the past year is horrifying. The lack of understanding shown is astounding and deeply saddening. It’s a shame when your own Government shows a fraction of the understanding that dentists and banks show.
Take care,
Gordon
11 Comments »
Leave a Reply
About this blog
 Hi, I’m Moira Fraser, Director of Policy at The Princess Royal Trust for Carers. Our network is the largest provider of services for carers in the UK.
I also work closely with Crossroads Care, the leading provider of respite services for carers. In my job I ensure that the issues affecting carers are taken to Government, and sometimes, just sometimes, they listen to us and …read more |
|
 |
 |
Carers newsSubscribe by RSS
-
Recent comments
Jason on Government Does Good by Not Sc… Daphne Sanderson on GPs can be a lifeline for… moirafraser on Capping it off – the hidden ho… dawn locke on Young carers wiped off the map… dawn locke on Young carers wiped off the map…
The problem is that the government believes its own propaganda.
Charles
My partner has been and is still being prosecuted by the DWP because she forgot possibly to notify carers allowance about her working. She started work back in 2006 and was interviewed in 2010. She just could not remember who she had contacted at the time. Quite clearly she had contacted the Benefits agency as all her other benefits had ceased but not the carers aspect. She was the primary carer for twin boys with disabilities who recieve the fullest rate of dla. the carers aspect had been paid since 1993 when they were born. She was advised to plead guilty in court which she did, believing that it would be done and dusted so we could sort out a payment plan and continue on with our lives, but no. The DWP are now pursuing this in the Crown Court with the proceeds of crime act. To say they have no symapathy or understanding for carers is an understament. Unfortunately she works for the DWP and it appears she is being used as a scapegoat by them. She has been suspended for the last three weeks pending a disciplinary case. she has already been told that the outcome will probably be dismissal.
This has brought not just her but us as a family to our knees. I have been a stay at home father since I moved in in 2007 and whilst I was caring for one of her boys during this time the benfits agency are not concerned. so we cannot even offset some of the overpayment against what I as we are now aware could have claimed.
As you all know caring for someone is highly stressful so imagine that doubled with twin boys , the separation from the boys alcholic and abusive father and a third younger son with his own problems and now the stress, anger and guilt that she feels especially as the national press treated her with their normal sympathetic tendancies and labelled her a benefits fiddler.
It seems we have nowhere to turn too and have just got to hope that the Crown Court Judge sees this as a misuse of power by the DWP . I have written to our MP on three occasion but all I get is ” It has been passed on”. As yet no reply has been received from The welfare secretary.
If anyone has any suggestions as to anybody or an organisation which may be able to help us please feel free to contact me.
Hi Alistair
Has your partner got legal advice? Do you have a hearing date for the Crown Court? We do not have the legal expertise to really help but do contact me directly through web@carers.org if you would like. Having read what has worked for other carers in the discussion forum that I highlighted above, it could be that some of that is useful.
I’m really sorry to hear what’s happening to you and your partner Alistair.
Gordon
I have been a CARER for 25 years and what i have just read makes me PIG SICK. Not that long ago we were reading about MP,s fiddling there expenses,and um
HOW MANY ACTUALLY GOT PROSECUTED?????????????????????????
When i first became a CARER i had a 12 month fight to get my wife her DISABILITY BENEFITS and now the GOVERNMENT and the DWP are WAGING A WAR against CARERS , and to cap it all they call us SCROUNGERS CHEATS etc.etc.
If that were not all i found out that years ago NOBODY INFORMED MY WIFE,S PARENTS THAT SHE WAS ENTITLED TO HALF THE GOING RATE OF WHAT WAS THEN “MOBILITY ALLOWANCE”. My wife lost out on thousands of pounds in benefits.
THIS GOVERNMENT AND THIS COUNTRY ARE GUILTY OF WITHHOLDING AND DENYING HELP AND BENEFITS TO THOSE MOST IN NEED AND VULNERABLE.
WHEN IS ANYTHING GOING TO BE DONE ABOUT THAT.
TODAY IT IS THE LAW OF THE JUNGLE THE POWERFUL AND POLITICALLY CONNECTED – THE WEALTHY PRAYING ON THE MOST WEAK AND VULNERABLE IN OUR SOCIETY.
WHAT ARE YOU AND ANY OF YOU WHO CLAIM TO REPRESENT AND SPEAK ON BEHALF OF THE DISABLED AND THERE CARERS GOING TO DO DO ABOUT THIS
WELL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
OR IS IT THE CASE THAT YOU DON,T CARE EITHER??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
thank you for this Gordon, it highlights the issues and the fear lived in.
Thank you for highlighting just how many additional demands are placed upon carers. It shouldn’t matter who or which government department carer’s disclose their earnings/benefits to – as long as they disclose them to one of them. Because there has been so much negative press attention given to `benefit fraud’ generally, carer’s are often judged before their case are even looked at properly. Very few people (other than other carers) really know what it is like to be in a long term highly demanding caring roll – and yes – mistakes do happen – particularly when tired.
Gordon, you are a star, thank you for highlighting this nightmare that some of us carer’s are going through. Lets hope some sense is made of it all soon.
Julie
I was claiming carers allowance and I notified the carers allowance department as I was claiming housing and council tax benefit I told all departments that I had started work but I have just been found guilty of not notifying the department of work and pensions of change circumstances they said that I did not notify them, But I did notify them when I started work in 2008 but they still continued to pay me now they say it is my fault and they called me a liar I think that the DWP should notify people of their rights but they don’t and that is hard for you to try and prove them wrong. they can fabricate documents to their own ends. and try and make out that it is their policy, It does make you very hostile against the benefit departments and puts you off applying for something that you are entitled to.
I have just found this website as i have been researching this. I too am being accused of benefit fraud for not having time to read the letters. I am absolutely frightened to death of the outcome and the effect its having on my family. I have been caring for my cancer suffering husband for the past 3 years and now have to deal with this,,devastated is not the word.
[...] Read a previous post by Gordon to see why legal aid can be important for carers [...]
Hi all
I’ve just heard that one of the carers who was taken to court was found not guilty. They simply said they were “happy again”.
It’s brilliant news and hugely heartening to know there are people out there helping break down the doors that carers face – See my latest blog http://carersblog.wordpress.com/2012/01/24/the-thread-that-connects-carers-ex-carers-and-their-supporters/