Martin Lewis urges all disabled or ill pensioners to check if they could get £3,500+ a year
Martin Lewis is urging pensioners to see if they can claim the state pension age benefit Attendance Allowance
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Money saving expert Martin Lewis has issued a fresh call for disabled or ill pensioners to check to see if they could claim a payment to help them with extra costs.
A successful Attendance Allowance claim is worth more than £3,500 a year.
Among those eligible is Philip, who recently contacted the financial journalist to say he and his wife had been struggling for eight months, and hadn’t realised they might qualify for help.
The couple applied for Attendance Allowance last month, and told Money Saving Expert that the extra £68 per week they can now get makes their lives “just a little bit easier in difficult times”.
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Attendance Allowance recipients do not need to have someone caring for them in order to claim
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Writing in the weekly Money Tips email, the Money Saving Expert founder Mr Lewis explained: “It’s not means-tested – if you or a loved one needs help with daily living, check now.”
Mr Lewis warned people who get Personal Independence Payment (PIP) or Disability Living Allowance (DLA) to "beware" as it's not possible to get Attendance Allowance as well, and they may be better off getting the former benefits.
Attendance Allowance is intended to help with extra costs if a person who has reached state pension age has a mental or physical disability severe enough that they need someone to help looking after them.
Recipients do not need to have someone caring for them in order to claim.
It may also mean a person is entitled to extra Pension Credit Housing Benefit or Council Tax Reduction.
Attendance Allowance is paid at two different rates, with the level awarded to those eligible dependent on the level of help needed.
Currently, the lower rate is £68 a week and a person must need frequent help or constant supervision during the day, or supervision at night, to get it.
The higher rate is £101.75 per week and the level of help required for this rate is defined as: "Help or supervision throughout both day and night, or a medical professional has said you might have 12 months or less to live."
Attendance Allowance isn't means-tested and this means entitlement isn't affected by income or how much a person has in savings.
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To claim Attendance Allowance, a person must either print and submit the Attendance Allowance claim form from the Government website or contact the helpline to request a claim form.
It must then be sent to Freepost DWP Attendance Allowance. There is a different process for Attendance Allowance in Northern Ireland.
People in Northern Ireland can call the Disability and Carers Service to request a claim pack, download an application form or collect an application form from their local Jobs and Benefits office.
Age Scotland is running free workshops over the next couple of months. The service aims to help people living in Scotland with the main rules and how to make a claim for Attendance Allowance.
There will be an "Unlock your entitlements: benefits for people over State Pension age" session on February 7, between 10am and 12pm and an "Attendance Allowance: completing the form" workshop from 10am until 11.30am on March 26. More details and information on how to sign up can be found here.
Martin Lewis is the Founder and Chair of MoneySavingExpert.com.