Last week, benefits advisers Sarah and Ceri were in the chatroom answering your questions about benefits.
Topics included, delays to PIP, benefits while working and on sick leave, and help with travel costs. All the questions and answers from the chat are below.
The chat is now finished, but you can still speak to a benefits adviser like Sarah or Ceri by calling us free on 0808 808 0000 (Monday-Friday, 9am-8pm).
Are PIP and ESA means-tested?
Ceri: PIP (Personal Independence Payment) is not means-tested at all, but is dependent on whether you have problems with daily living tasks and/or mobility.
Part of ESA (Employment and Support Allowance) is National Insurance contribution-based and another part can be means-tested (dependant on circumstances, income and savings). It can be quite complex - we'd be happy to help and advise in more detail if you ring us on 0808 808 0000.
Is it possible to claim DLA with breast cancer? My oncologist says yes, but from other people’s experience it seems to be no. I do not have the energy to try applying if there is no chance of getting it. I am still waiting to get a date to start chemotherapy. I have had a mastectomy and lymph node removal.
Sarah: DLA (Disability Living Allowance) has now been replaced by Personal Independence Payment, for all new adult claims. To qualify for this benefit under the standard rules, you have to have daily living needs (getting washed, dressed, at mealtimes etc) and/or mobility problems as a result of any illness or disability.
Unfortunately cancer is not an automatic qualifying condition. Also, you must have had the needs for at least 3 months and expect to have them for a further 9 months - so it is really a benefit for people with long-term needs.
There are some special rules under which a claim can be made, but this is for people with a poor prognosis - so if there is a possibility that they may die within the next 6 months.
My partner has been diagnosed with lung cancer. He has been told he can't get JSA or ESA. We don't know what benefits he is entitled to since he came off JSA. No one at their office can help us.
Ceri: If your partner is not available for work, ESA would be the benefit to go for rather than JSA (Job-Seeker’s Allowance).
Has your partner made a formal application to ESA and been given a written decision letter? The reason it has been refused may be due to your partner's National Insurance contribution record in recent tax years, or your wider circumstances (for example if you live together as a couple and you are working 24 hours per week or more).
Please contact the welfare rights team with more information and we'll advise you in more detail and in confidence.
My mother-in-law has just been diagnosed with primary CNS NHL. As she is retired, she's obviously not entitled to DLA, but I heard of something called Attendance Allowance - is this something you ladies have heard of? She was admitted to hospital this morning with a view to starting in-patient chemo on Monday.
Sarah: Sorry to hear about your mother-in-law's diagnosis. Attendance Allowance is a benefit for people age 65 or over, with care needs resulting from an illness or disability. For a standard claim, you have to have had the care needs for at least 6 months - so this is things like washing and bathing, help needed at mealtimes, moving about/using stairs, dressing/undressing etc. Do you think this sounds like something she may qualify for?
We also have some information about NHL (Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma) on our website.
I'm going through stage 3 breast cancer. I've had chemo and radiotherapy. I get ESA. I moved into a council house after being homeless and I was wondering if there is any help for me in getting carpets and an electric cooker? I've not had a meal since I moved, in only microwave meals.
Ceri: There may be some welfare assistance provision from your local council, but this varies from council to council and can be poorly advertised and hard to access.
We have a Macmillan Grant, providing one-off grants for cancer patients, which can be applied for on your behalf by a cancer specialist nurse, social worker or by one of us on the Welfare Rights Team (Tel: 0808 808 0000).
Also a charity called Turn2Us can help you search for other grants or financial assistance. Their web-site address is www.turn2us.org.uk and their telephone number is 0808 802 2000.
My husband suffered head and neck cancer four years ago and, after treatment (chemo and radio) he has very little saliva, he has tightening of his neck and he now has problems with swallowing food and is at risk of choking. He is also now taking strong medication for nerve damage caused by the treatment, which make him drowsy and often forgetful. We have been told by the doctors things probably won't get any better. Do you think it's worth us applying for PIP?
Sarah: It is quite possible that it may be worth making a claim for PIP. I would encourage you to give us a call on as we can do an assessment, and go through a few basic questions surrounding his problems. PIP is assessed on a points scoring system now, so it's actually a bit easier to conclude whether it's worth making a claim. Our number is 0808 808 0000 - please just ask to speak to someone in the Welfare Right Team.
I'm sorry to hear about your husband’s late effects from head and neck cancer treatment. We've actually just produced a new booklet about the late effects of head and neck cancer. It will include ways to manage things like tightness in the neck and dry mouth. It's only just on the way to the printers so will be available to order for free on be.macmillan.org.uk very soon. Hope that's useful.
You might also be interested in joining in our head & neck cancer group on the Online Community, where you can read other people’s experiences of dealing with the late effects.
Once you've been awarded a PIP (for example) what changes do you need to tell them about?
Sarah: It's the PIP claimant’s responsibility to inform the DWP of any changes that may affect their entitlement, so for example if their daily living needs or mobility problems reduce.
Say, for example, someone was awarded the enhanced rate of PIP - this is generally paid if someone has both day-time and night-time daily living needs. If their condition improves and they no longer had night-time needs, they would be required to inform the DWP of this change.
I don't want to alarm someone reading this whose needs are intermittent though – you can still claim as long as you have the needs at least 50% of the time.
Sad to say my dad has also been recently diagnosed with another cancer (he has prostate cancer and also had a stoma fitted for bowel cancer). He was also diagnosed with cancer nodules on his lungs. My family are waiting to see the oncologist next week to see what treatment may be offered, but my mum is not in good health with mobility either. They are both pensioners, can they try to claim anything yet to help with extra costs or will they need to wait?
Sarah: Really sorry to hear that your dad has nodules on his lungs. If the cancer is progressing rapidly, then your dad may qualify for disability benefits under the special rules, which means (if they apply) that a claim should be processed as a priority. I don't think it's too early to look in to what support they may be entitled to - give us a call.
I'm just having time off work (three or four weeks) due to having a second operation, but I'm only getting SSP from my work. Is there a way I can claim money back to help pay the mortgage and bills?
Ceri: There may be some help available towards mortgage interest and other living expenses if your only income is SSP, but it depends if you live alone or have other people (and other incomes) in your household. Some options could be: Income Support (or Pension Credit if you are over state pension age), Council Tax Support, Disability Benefits or maybe a grant. Would you be able to ring us on the Welfare Rights Team (0808 808 0000) to discuss things in more detail?
My son has been diagnosed with Fibrolamellar HCC. He is currently awaiting a liver resection at a hospital more than miles away. Is there any help available for family who want to visit him while he’s in the ICU and high dependency unit? He has just turned 22 and is currently receiving ESA. The family are on benefits.
Sarah: Sorry to hear about your son's diagnosis and that he is in hospital. We do something called a Macmillan Grant, which is generally a one-off payment but can help towards extra costs resulting from having cancer or its treatment. The grant is for the cancer patient, though, so it would have to be your son who claims, and it is dependent on his income and savings levels.
For the family themselves, they could try their local authority to see if there is any assistance they can get. They may be able to get a budgeting loan through the social fund - but this would be re-payable through their benefits. It may also be worth them having a benefit check to ensure they are getting their correct entitlement.
A budgeting loan can be applied for by phoning 0845 603 6967 - in case that's the route the family would like to consider. If you would like a Macmillan Grant sending out then please contact us on 0808 808 0000.
There's also information on our site about help with things like travel costs and parking at hospitals, which might be useful to read.
My wife has advanced Ovarian Cancer. She was awarded DLA and ESA on diagnosis as the prognosis was very poor. That was 18 months ago and she is currently doing well, despite residual disease. She is not currently on any treatment and the cancer seems to be held at bay for now. We run our own business which has obviously suffered and she wants to go back to work to gain a little normality (there would be little if any income from doing so). The thing is, we know at some point she will have to go back on treatment and are worried that when she does so she will have to give up her benefits and reapply for PIP, which would mean waiting a long time and we would have no income while waiting for an award. Is there a way around this that would allow her to do some work?
Ceri: If your wife has been awarded DLA for a three-year period and is currently in the 'support group' for ESA, there is some provision for these benefits to continue if she returns to work. DLA only need to know about significant and long-lasting changes to a person's condition and DLA can be paid to people who are working (even full-time).
ESA generally ends when a person returns to work, but ESA can consider some work as 'permitted work' if the hours worked and earnings are within certain limits. If you can find out exactly what rates of DLA and ESA your wife is receiving and contact us on the Welfare Rights Team we can advise you further and discuss in more detail (0808 808 0000).
I am currently waiting for ATOS doctors to process my forms. They have had them since 3 February. How much longer should I leave it before going to my MP?
Sarah: I'm not sure whether you are referring to the forms for Employment and Support Allowance or Personal Independence Payment. Sadly there are lots of delays with both benefits being processed at the moment, especially for PIP. Either way, I don't think it will do any harm if you wish to highlight the delays to your MP as the delays are affecting a lot of people. Macmillan are recording these social policy issues, too in support of campaigning for a fairer benefits system.
I’m not on benefits and still working. Is there any help I might be able to get?
Ceri: Now there's a question! I’d need to know a few more details. If you are working but your earnings are below certain limits, we could look into entitlement to Working Tax Credit, help with council tax, rent and NHS costs on low income grounds. We can also consider Personal Independence Payment (PIP) if you have problems with daily living tasks and/or mobility but are still able to work.
It depends on how many hours you work, how much you earn, and many other factors. If you are a cancer patient having treatment or recovering from surgery or treatment there may be grants we could look into for you too. Could you ring us on the welfare rights team and talk to us? (0808 808 0000)