AN extra 60,000 carers will be able to claim government cash after changes expected at next week’s Budget.
Rachel Reeves is set to raise the limit people can earn before being ineligible for the carers allowance from £151 a week to £181.
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The £30 uplift will be the largest increase in the threshold since the benefit was introduced in 1976.
It is the equivalent of 16 hours a week for people on the living wage.
Carers Allowance is an £81.90 weekly bung for people looking after a severely disabled child or adult.
The current earnings cap of £151 a week after income, national insurance and expenses has been criticised as far too low.
It has seen many selfless carers unknowingly bust the limit and later told to repay large sums of their benefits.
Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall had launched a review of the overpayments scandal.
Ms Reeves will say the raised earnings cap will reduce the likelihood of carers earning over the maximum.
Helen Walker, Chief Executive of Carers UK, said: “We found 4 in 10 unpaid carers were pushed out of work because of problems with the earnings limit, plunging many into poverty.
“This new measure will help many more unpaid carers up and down the country to stay in paid work, putting much needed finances into families’ pockets.”
It comes as households on carer’s allowance continue to face substantial repayment demands after exceeding a critical weekly earnings limit.
Figures in August revealed that over 134,500 unpaid carers are collectively repaying £251million in benefit overpayments.
The Sun has previously highlighted cases where some individuals were required to repay up to £20,000 after unknowingly breaching carer’s allowance rules.
In an effort to reform the system and prevent more people from being caught out, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has initiated an independent review on the matter.
In response to the overwhelming number of repayment demands issued to claimants, the DWP’s independent review, in collaboration with the former chief executive of Disability Rights UK, aims to investigate the causes and mechanisms behind the overpayments.
It will then recommend “operational changes” to minimise the risk of future overpayments and outline how the DWP can best support those affected by overpayment issues.
What is carer’s allowance?
CARER’S allowance is a UK benefit designed to help people who have caring responsibilities for more than 35 hours each week.
Those eligible get £81.90 a week paid directly into bank accounts.
To qualify, the person you care for must already get one of these benefits:
- Personal independence payment (PIP) – daily living component
- Disability living allowance – the middle or highest care rate
- Attendance allowance
- Constant attendance allowance at or above the normal maximum rate with an Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit
- Constant attendance allowance at the basic (full day) rate with a war disablement pension
- Armed forces independence payment
You don’t have to be related to the person or live with them to apply.
But if you share caring responsibilities with someone else, only one of you can make a claim.
The type of care you provide can vary, but includes things such as helping with washing or cooking, taking the person to medical appointments or helping out with household tasks such as shopping or organising bills.
To get the benefit, you must also meet a certain set of criteria:
- You must be 16 or over
- You have to spend at least 35 hours a week caring for someone
- You need to have been in England, Scotland or Wales for at least two of the last three years (this does not apply if you’re a refugee or have humanitarian protection status)
- You must normally live in England, Scotland or Wales or live abroad as a member of the armed forces (you might still be eligible if you’re moving to or already living in an EEA country or Switzerland)
- You cannot be in full-time education
- You must not be studying for 21 hours a week or more
- You cannot be subject to immigration control
- You will also have to meet certain earnings criteria in order to get the benefit.
Your earnings must also be £151 or less a week after tax, National Insurance and expenses.
You can apply for the carer’s allowance online by visiting www.gov.uk/carers-allowance/how-to-claim.