Terms & Conditions

[Steadman]

Claimant is on State Pension and Pension credit (GC). Partner moves in, he is under pension age and on ESA. GC gets cancelled from the 10.03.23. Claimant is added to her partner’s ESA award from the 14.04.23, including her SRP and her Pensioner Premium is added to his ESA’s applicable amount.

A3/2019 states:
Single pensioners who form a mixed age couple
8. If a single pensioner forms a couple with a person below the qualifying age on or
after 15 May 2019, entitlement to pension age Housing Benefit and Pension Credit will
end.

but then states:
Q4: If Pension Credit ceases, can claimants continue to
receive pension age Housing Benefit?
A4: Yes, pension age Housing Benefit can remain in payment due to the savings
provisions included in the Commencement Order. Pension age Housing Benefit will
need to be re-assessed on the grounds of low income once Pension Credit ceases.

Should the HB claim be cancelled and they must claim UC or should HB remain in payment?

• This topic was modified 5 months ago by Steadman.
• This topic was modified 5 months ago by Steadman.

[Peter Barker]

If there is entitlement to ESA(ir), HB continues because Article 6(2)(a) says HB terminates if the claimant becomes a member of a mixed age couple AND the HB award would have been under the HB(SPC) Regs. This HB award will be under the working age HB Regs so it doesn’t terminate.

[Steadman]

Hi Peter, thanks so much for replying.
Are you meaning she had a single Pensioner claim previously but this is irrelevant now as they would now be treated as Working Age claim as her partner is of Working Age so termination no longer applies?
I’m sure you are right but could please explain that to me as if I was an idiot 😆

Paul (Carlisle)

• This reply was modified 5 months ago by Steadman.

[Peter Barker]

I’ll try!

Pensioner cannot get SPC if s/he has a working ge partner, unless transitionally protected. No TP in this case because only just become member of MAC.

That puts the kibosh on older partner’s SPC. But if pension income low enough for the younger partner to remain entitled to ESA(ir) after forming a couple, ESA can continue. That in turn prevents the older partner’s HB from terminating because it is administered under the working age HB Regs. All the events that terminate HB for mixed age couples involve the terminated award being subject to the HB(SPC) Regs.

Q4 in the circular is about transitionally protected claimants who are already part of an MAC and float off SPC but not HB.

[Steadman]

Thank you Peter 👌

[peterdelamothe]

“please explain that to me as if I was an idiot”

!

Mixed age is very complex and highlights how different circs and the Welfare State change the decision. It does not help that DWP do not really understand all of their regs in this area. Plus they make “wrong” decisions deliberately in various circumstances. A pensioner and a partner reaching pension age in a few weeks/months. What a waste of time and money to comply with the UC rules etc. I sympathise sometimes. To be fair a Minister just announced a start date for the Regs years after the Act so it was all rushed.

Unless the TP is abolished, it is possible that it will all get even more complex in the future with managed migration and various changes in circs such as changes in partners.

But I thought the system was intended to simplify newcomers might say…. ha ha. Sure.

[Author]

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