Money

How millions are missing out on unclaimed cash – could you get up to £5,772?

Published

2 days ago

October 16, 2024

How millions are missing out on unclaimed cash - could you get up to £5,772?

MILLIONS of households could be forfeiting up to £5,772 a year in cash to help with bills.

Struggling families are collectively missing out on a staggering £27billion in means-tested benefits and social tariffs.

Some households could be up to £5,772 better off if they were to apply for Universal Credit, according to Policy in Practice.

A further 760,000 individuals eligible for pension credit but not applying stand to miss out on this year’s winter fuel payment, which is worth up to £300.

Of the £27billion in unclaimed benefits, over £8.3billion is attributed to Universal Credit, £5.2billion to attendance allowance, nearly £2.3billion to carer’s allowance, more than £1.5billion to pension credit, and £1.7billion to child benefit.

How much could you be missing out on?

We’ve explained your chances and how to apply for extra support below.

Universal Credit

You could be missing out on £5,772 a year

Policy in Practice estimates that a staggering £8.3billion of Universal Credit goes unclaimed by more than 1.4million people, who could claim an average of £5,772 a year.

Universal Credit is a monthly payment to help with your living costs.

How much money you’ll get depends on your circumstances, but the monthly standard allowance is £393.45 for a single person over 25 and £617.60 for a couple who are both over that age.

If you have a disability or health condition, or if your child does, there are extra top-ups you can get in your Universal Credit award.

All the freebies you can get on Universal Credit

If you rent, you can also get help towards those costs and any service fees you might pay.

Universal Credit can also open the door to other support including free school meals or social tariffs.

Everything you need to know about Universal Credit

Attendance allowance

You could be missing out on £4,727 a year

Around 1.1million people in the UK living with a disability are missing out on £5.2billion worth of attendance allowance payments.

Those living with less severe disabilities can get up to £72.65 a week, which works out at £290 a month.

You may be eligible for this if you require help or constant supervision during the day or at night.

The higher rate of £108.55 a week is given to those who require supervision throughout both day and night, or if a medical professional has said you’re nearing the end of life.

This works out as £434.20 a month or £5,644 a year.

To apply, visit gov.uk/attendance-allowance/how-to-claim.

Carer’s allowance

You could be missing out on £4,259 a year

Nearly £2.3billion worth of carer’s allowance is going unclaimed each financial year, with around 530,000 full-time, low paid carers missing out.

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

Your earnings must also be £151 or less a week after tax, National Insurance and expenses.

Carer’s allowance payments will stop if your income breaches this level, but this may not happen automatically.

In recent months, thousands of carer’s allowance claimants have been unknowingly hit by the hard stop figure and been chased to pay their benefits back.

To avoid falling into this trap, you need to report a change in circumstances to the DWP as soon as your weekly income hits this threshold.

You can apply for the carer’s allowance online by visiting www.gov.uk/carers-allowance/how-to-claim.

Your earnings must also be £151 or less a week after tax, National Insurance and expenses.

Carer’s allowance payments will stop if your income breaches this level, but this may not happen automatically.

In recent months, thousands of carer’s allowance claimants have been unknowingly hit by the hard stop figure and been chased to pay their benefits back.

To avoid falling into this trap, you need to report a change in circumstances to the DWP as soon as your weekly income hits this threshold.

You can apply for the carer’s allowance online by visiting www.gov.uk/carers-allowance/how-to-claim.

Housing benefit

You could be missing out on £3,700 a year

Almost 270,000 pensioners are missing out on £1.1billion in pension age housing benefit, according to the new figures, going without £3,700 a year on average.

The benefit is for pensioners who pay rent, are on a low income and have savings under £16,000.

New claims for housing benefit are strictly reserved for those over the state pension age.

Universal Credit‘s housing element has replaced housing benefit for those under 66 years old.

You can apply for housing benefit directly with your local council.

Find yours by visiting gov.uk/apply-housing-benefit-from-council.

You can also apply for housing benefit as part of a pension credit claim.

Are you missing out on benefits?

YOU can use a benefits calculator to help check that you are not missing out on money you are entitled to

Charity Turn2Us’ benefits calculator works out what you could get.

Entitledto’s free calculator determines whether you qualify for various benefits, tax credit and Universal Credit.

MoneySavingExpert.com and charity StepChange both have benefits tools powered by Entitledto’s data.

You can use Policy in Practice’s calculator to determine which benefits you could receive and how much cash you’ll have left over each month after paying for housing costs.

Your exact entitlement will only be clear when you make a claim, but calculators can indicate what you might be eligible for.

Child benefit

You could be missing out on £1,970 a year

One in ten of those entitled to child benefit do not claim, meaning the parents of 838,000 kids may be missing out.

Child benefit is worth up to £1,331 a year for your first or only child and up to £881 a year for additional children.

This works out at £102.40 every four weeks or £25.60 a week for your first child and £67.80 every four weeks or £16.95 a week for their siblings.

There is no limit on the number of children that can be claimed for.

Applying is straightforward and can be done in minutes at gov.uk or through the HMRC app.

Pension credit

You could be missing out on £1,900 a year

The latest Department for Work and Pension (DWP) statistics reveal that up to 760,000 families entitled to pension credit did not claim it during the financial year ending in 2023.

Pension credit, a means-tested benefit designed to top up the income of the poorest pensioners, is becoming increasingly important as it is now linked to other crucial support.

In particular, those claiming pension credit are eligible for the winter fuel payment, which has become more restrictive following recent government changes.

The benefit goes to those who’ve reached state pension age, which is currently 66, whose weekly income is less than £201.05 if you’re single, or £306.85 for couples.

Those who have a higher income may still be eligible if they have a higher income but have others costs like housing, a disability, or even savings.

Claiming pension credit can also unlock extra help, including, a free TV licence if you’re over 75, help with council tax and support with household costs such as ground rent.

Claiming pension credit

TO qualify for pension credit, you need to be over state pension age and live in England, Scotland or Wales.

If you have a partner, you need to include them on your claim.

Pension Credit tops up:

your weekly income to £218.15 if you’re single
your joint weekly income to £332.95 if you have a partner

However, even if your income is higher, you might still qualify if you have a disability or caring responsibilities.

There is also another element to Pension Credit called savings credit. To get this, you need to have saved some money towards your retirement.

You can get an extra £17.01 a week for a single person or £19.04 a week for a married couple.

If you have more than £10,000 in savings, the government uses a calculation to work out how much it adds to your income.

Every £500 over £10,000 counts as £1 income a week. For example, if you have £11,000 in savings, this counts as £2 income a week.

Council Tax Support

You could be missing out on £1,513 a year

Almost 2.3million people miss out on £3.4billion of Council Tax Support.

The unclaimed amount includes almost a £1million in pension age council tax support. The rest is for those of working age.

The average claim for working age council tax support is £1,464, while the support for pensioners is worth an average of £1,670.

Given out by local councils, claiming can be a postcode lottery, depending where you live, your income, dependents and other benefits.

Scotland and Wales have their own national schemes, but in England the amount differs by local authority.

To find out what’s on offer in your area, visit gov.uk/find-local-council.

Healthy Start vouchers

You could be missing out on £726 during pregnancy and early years

New parents can claim an average of £726 of Healthy Start support during pregnancy and early years, with £132million going unclaimed.

Overall, 180,000 people are missing out.

Healthy Start food vouchers are for parents who are pregnant or have a child under four years old.

The vouchers are worth £4.25 a week, or £221 a year.

But those with a child under the age of one get two vouchers, worth £8.50 a week, which adds up to £442 a year.

Warm Home Discount

You could be missing out on £150 a year

Half of people entitled to the Warm Home Discount are not claiming, meaning up to 2.5million are missing out on £150 a year.

This is largely due to eligible people not claiming pension credit as the “gateway” benefit.

The support is a one-off deduction off your electricity bill made between October and March each year.

The money isn’t paid to you, but is applied as credit on your bill.

It’s automatic in the vast majority of cases, but due to the way the scheme operates, certain households have to apply for the rebate.

Free school meals

You could be missing out on £490 a year

More than 471,000 families may be going without £490 worth of free school meals, with £231million going unclaimed.

This could be due to not claiming Universal Credit.

Eligibility criteria for free school meals varies depending on where you live.

Currently, all children from reception to year two qualify for free school meals in England.

In Scotland, all students between reception and year five can get help regardless of their parent’s income.

In Wales, pupils in reception get free school meals.

Whether you are eligible for free school meals after that depends on whether you get certain benefits and your income.

Contact your child’s school or local council for more information.

Social tariffs for water and broadband

You could be missing out on £360 a year

Social tariffs help lower-income households pay for essential water or broadband costs.

But more than nine in ten families entitled to help with their broadband costs aren’t claiming it.

Almost £1.7billion of the broadband support available isn’t claimed, with 95% of households – more than 8.4million – who may be eligible missing out on an average of £200 a year.

For water bills, only one in five households take advantage of the support available, with families missing out on an average claim of £160 a year.

People on means-tested benefits, or anyone struggling to pay their bills, should check with their water company or telecoms firm.

Funds may also be available through energy companies to help with bills.

TV licence

You could be missing out on £170 a year

Of those eligible to claim a free TV licence – mainly people over 75 claiming pension credit – only one in four do so.

The remaining six in ten – up to 1.5million – miss out on a saving of £170 a year.

You can apply for your free licence online or by calling 0300 790 6117.

Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing money-sm@news.co.uk.

Plus, you can join our Sun Money Chats and Tips Facebook group to share your tips and stories

Source link

Money

DWP update for thousands on State Pension who could miss out on £300 Winter Fuel Payment

Published

4 mins ago

October 17, 2024

NewsAdmin

DWP update for thousands on State Pension who could miss out on £300 Winter Fuel Payment

THE Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has issued an update to state pensioners who could miss out on the Winter Fuel Payment.

The Government department said it will get in touch with those claiming Housing Benefit but not Pension Credit.

Housing Benefit claimants can also get Pension Credit to cover the cost of livingCredit: Getty

You can claim the two benefits at the same time, with Pension Credit unlocking the up to £300 Winter Fuel Payment, but tens of thousands who can are not.

In response to Labour MP Paula Barker, Sir Stephen Timms, a minister at the DWP, said it was working with councils to boost the uptake of Pension Credit.

Sir Stephen also said the DWP will be directly contacting pensioners who are receiving Housing Benefit that may be eligible for Pension Credit in November to encourage them to claim.

A DWP spokesperson added: “We will be writing to 120,000 pensioner households in receipt of Housing Benefit but who are not currently claiming Pension Credit as they may be eligible.

“We urge anyone who thinks they may be entitled to Pension Credit to check their eligibility and apply.”

It comes after the Government announced a major change to the eligibility criteria for the Winter Fuel Payment.

The up to £300 payment used to be issued to anyone of state pension age, currently 66, or older.

But the Government has now made it means-tested meaning only those on certain benefits receive it.

You now only receive it if you are on one of the following benefits:

Pension Credit
Universal Credit
income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)
Income Support
Child Tax Credit
Working Tax Credit

Winter Fuel Payment Changes

The Social Fund Winter Fuel Payments Regulation 2024 reduces the number of people receiving a Winter Fuel Payment in England and Wales from 10.8million to 1.5million.

The Government estimates the move will save it £1.3billion this financial year and £1.5billion per financial year after this year.

However, hundreds of thousands will miss out on the Winter Fuel Payment because they are not claiming Pension Credit despite being eligible.

The Government is in a drive to get as many people on to the benefit which not only unlocks the £300 payment but is worth on average £3,900 a year.

What is Pension Credit and who is eligible?

Pension Credit is a Government benefit designed to top up your weekly income if you are a state pensioner with low earnings.

The current state pension age is 66.

There are two parts to the benefit – Guarantee Credit and Savings Credit.

Guarantee Credit tops up your weekly income to £218.15 if you are single or your joint weekly income to £332.95 if you have a partner.

Savings Credit is extra money you get if you have some savings or your income is above the basic full state pension amount – £169.50.

Savings Credit is only available to people who reached state pension age before April 6, 2016.

Usually, you only qualify for Pension Credit if your income is below the £218.15 or £332.95 thresholds.

However, you can sometimes be eligible for Savings Credit or Guarantee Credit depending on your circumstances.

For example, if you are suffering from a severe disability and claiming Attendance Allowance, as well as other benefits, you can get an extra £81.50 a week.

Meanwhile, you can get either £66.29 a week or £76.79 a week for each child you’re responsible and caring for.

The rules behind who qualifies for Pension Credit can be complicated, so the best thing to do is just check.

You can do this by calling the Pension Service helpline on 0800 99 1234 from 8am to 5pm Monday to Friday or by using free online calculators.

Those in Northern Ireland have to call the Pension Centre on 0808 100 6165 from 9am to 4pm Monday to Friday.

It might be worth a visit to your local Citizens Advice branch too – its staff should be able to offer you help for free.

Pension Credit is known as a “gateway” benefit which means it opens up a host of perks, like the winter fuel payment and a free TV licence if you are 75 or older.

It also unlocks discounts on your council tax and the Warm Home Discount, if you are on the Guarantee Credit part of the benefit.

What is the Winter Fuel Payment?

Consumer reporter Sam Walker explains all you need to know about the payment.

The Winter Fuel Payment is an annual tax-free benefit designed to help cover the cost of heating through the colder months.

Most who are eligible receive the payment automatically.

Those who qualify are usually told via a letter sent in October or November each year.

If you do meet the criteria but don’t automatically get the Winter Fuel Payment, you will have to apply on the government’s website.

You’ll qualify for a Winter Fuel Payment this winter if:

you were born on or before September 23, 1958
you lived in the UK for at least one day during the week of September 16 to 22, 2024, known as the “qualifying week”
you receive Pension Credit, Universal Credit, ESA, JSA, Income Support, Child Tax Credit or Working Tax Credit

If you did not live in the UK during the qualifying week, you might still get the payment if both the following apply:

you live in Switzerland or a EEA country
you have a “genuine and sufficient” link with the UK social security system, such as having lived or worked in the UK and having a family in the UK

But there are exclusions – you can’t get the payment if you live in Cyprus, France, Gibraltar, Greece, Malta, Portugal or Spain.

This is because the average winter temperature is higher than the warmest region of the UK.

You will also not qualify if you:

are in hospital getting free treatment for more than a year
need permission to enter the UK and your granted leave states that you can not claim public funds
were in prison for the whole “qualifying week”
lived in a care home for the whole time between 26 June to 24 September 2023, and got Pension Credit, Income Support, income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance or income-related Employment and Support Allowance

Payments are usually made between November and December, with some made up until the end of January the following year.

Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing money-sm@news.co.uk.

Plus, you can join our Sun Money Chats and Tips Facebook group to share your tips and stories

Source link

Money

Ardian and Rockfield seed pan-European student fund with €500m CBRE IM commitment

Published

25 mins ago

October 17, 2024

NewsAdmin

Ardian will act as investment manager for fund targeting best-in-class assets in undersupplied European markets.

The post Ardian and Rockfield seed pan-European student fund with €500m CBRE IM commitment appeared first on Property Week.

Source link

Money

Sainsbury’s introduces new self-service checkout rule at store as customers threaten to boycott

Published

46 mins ago

October 17, 2024

NewsAdmin

Sainsbury's introduces new self-service checkout rule at store as customers threaten to boycott

SAINSBURY’S has provoked customer backlash after making a major change at one of its stores.

One of the UK’s biggest retailers has added more self-service checkouts at its branch in Chippenham, Wiltshire.

Sainsbury's has sparked a backlash after making a major change at one of its stores — Sainsbury’s has sparked a backlash after making a major change at one of its storesCredit: Getty – Contributor

A spokesperson for the supermarket chain said it had made the change to meet “customer demand”.

But some customers on Facebook have been left fuming, saying the move has made the manned tills backlogged.

Some have gone as far to say they won’t shop at the branch again.

One said: “It’s awful. I went there the other day for a big shop, the queues were down the aisles for the manned tills so we were forced to use the new trolley self scanner.”

Another added: “I went yesterday there is no room at the self scanners especially if everyone has trolleys, think they will lose a lot of customers.”

A third chimed in: “I get why they’re doing it – I was told people walked out with £4K of shopping a few weeks ago but it’s now a very annoying and poor experience going there

“I will not use the self-checkouts – I prefer dealing with people not machines.”

Meanwhile, a fourth commented: “I won’t use the self checkout, I expect human service when (I am) spending my hard earned money in their stores and if they won’t serve me I am happy to leave my trolley and go somewhere else.”

A Sainsbury’s spokesperson said: “We regularly review the services available in our stores to make sure we offer the most convenient experience for our customers.

“We have slightly increased the number of self-service checkouts at our Chippenham store so that we can meet customer demand for this service.

How to find the best bargains at the supermarket

“Our colleagues are on hand to help anyone who may need support using them and we continue to offer serviced checkouts for our customers who wish to use them.”

Sainsbury’s is not the first supermarket to have made a change to self-checkout rules in recent months to customer frustration.

Asda introduced “self-checkout only hours” at one of its branches earlier this year, restricting customers to automated tills only at certain times of the day.

Signs in the Bournemouth store showed customers that from 7am to 8am Monday to Saturday, customers can use just self-scan checkouts.

From 8pm to 11pm on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday and from 7pm to 11pm on Wednesday, all manned tills are closed.

Asda told The Sun the move was a “temporary decision” made during quieter shopping hours and not a company-wide policy.

However, the supermarket chain, also said earlier this year that it will put more staff on tills in a bid to get more shoppers back in stores.

Over the past decade, supermarket bosses have invested in self-scanning tills, convinced customers prefer the speedier style of shopping.

But the move to automated tills has seen some shoppers left feeling left behind and dissatisfied.

Some supermarkets, like Asda, have rowed back on plans to increase the number of self-scan checkouts in stores though.

In August, Rami Baitiéh, the chief executive of Morrisons, announced the supermarket would scale back the number of self-checkouts in stores.

In an interview with The Telegraph, Baitiéh said the company was “reviewing the balance between self-checkouts and manned tills”.

High-end supermarket chain Booths, based in the North of England, abandoned the technology after discovering customers had a more enjoyable experience when interacting with a cashier.

This move aligns with data previously published by The Grocer which reveals service satisfaction has declined by as much as 8% due to the use of self-checkout machines.

If you want to avoid self-checkouts in your local supermarket or retailer branch, you could try scan-as-you-go tech.

They let you scan as you browse, either using their smartphone or a handheld device then checkout in a different area from other shoppers.

You often can bag your groceries as you wander around too, saving even more time.

How to save on your supermarket shop

THERE are plenty of ways to save on your grocery shop.

You can look out for yellow or red stickers on products, which show when they’ve been reduced.

If the food is fresh, you’ll have to eat it quickly or freeze it for another time.

Making a list should also save you money, as you’ll be less likely to make any rash purchases when you get to the supermarket.

Going own brand can be one easy way to save hundreds of pounds a year on your food bills too.

This means ditching “finest” or “luxury” products and instead going for “own” or value” type of lines.

Plenty of supermarkets run wonky veg and fruit schemes where you can get cheap prices if they’re misshapen or imperfect.

For example, Lidl runs its Waste Not scheme, offering boxes of 5kg of fruit and vegetables for just £1.50.

If you’re on a low income and a parent, you may be able to get up to £442 a year in Healthy Start vouchers to use at the supermarket too.

Plus, many councils offer supermarket vouchers as part of the Household Support Fund.

Source link

Money

Empiric Student Property raises £56m via share placing

Published

1 hour ago

October 17, 2024

NewsAdmin

Empiric Student Property raises £56m via share placing

Don’t want full access? REGISTER NOW for limited access and to subscribe to our newsletters.

Source link

Money

How famous silhouette on your 50p coin could make it worth 9000 TIMES more – check your change now

Published

1 hour ago

October 17, 2024

NewsAdmin

Three rare coins that could be worth £130,000 - including 1p that could make you 'retire early'

A FAMOUS silhouette on your 50p coin could make it worth more than 9000 times its face value.

The pieces were minted in 2019 to commemorate character Sherlock Holmes and his creator, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

The coin features a design of Sherlock HolmesCredit: EBay

This particular coin was priced at 9000 times more than its face valueCredit: EBay

The Queen Elizabeth II 50p: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle marked 160 years since the birth of the renowned author.

The prolific writer is best known for the popular detective stories featuring the fictional detective Sherlock Holmes.

Stephen Raw’s coin design features a silhouette of Sherlock Holmes smoking a pipe, surrounded by a few of Doyle’s most-famous story titles.

The head side features the fifth portrait of Queen Elizabeth II, designed by Royal Mint engraver Jody Clark.

One of the pieces was recently listed on eBay for £4,500, more than 9000 times the coin’s face value.

The listing read: “Crafted to perfection with a fineness of 0.999, this coin is a must-have for any British decimal coinage enthusiast.

“Featuring a very rare design, this coin is a true gem that you won’t want to miss.”

Others have also been listed on the marketplace, including multiple for £1,000.

While more than eight million of the coins were minted, some are rarer than others.

Certain variations are incredibly sought after by collectors, including ones with errors or special designs.

The 20p Coin you should check for

The Sherlock Holmes 50p coin was also released in different versions including Brilliant Uncirculated Packs, Silver proof versions, silver proof piedfort versions and also gold proof versions.

This, however, is not the only rare coin out there that you could find lying around in your change.

A rare 20p piece recently sold for £75 on eBay.

It was one of a number of coins struck with the wrong dye, meaning that no date is featured on the change.

It is thought around 250,000 coins have the error.

Similarly, a design flaw on a £2 led it to be sold for more than 40 times its value on eBay.

The coin was originally available to buy around five years ago to celebrate the 60th anniversary of Jersey Zoo, but now punters can only get it second-hand.

It is a commemorative coin meaning it is limited edition and would not usually be given as change if you bought something in a shop.