Who is carers allowance paid to

You can appeal against a decision to impose a civil penalty. Your circumstances can be checked at any time while you are claiming and fraud officers can also get information about you from other government agencies and from your employer, bank or utility companies.

Benefit fraud is a criminal offence and you can be prosecuted or asked to pay a penalty. If you are being investigated for benefit fraud, your benefit will be suspended. If you committed benefit fraud, your benefit can be reduced or stopped in the future. For more information on what to do if you are asked to attend an interview under caution, see Problems with benefits and tax credits.

Carer's Allowance is usually paid directly into a bank, building society or Post Office card account. You should do this within one month of the decision. If you are unhappy with the service you have received from the local benefits office or the DWP you can complain. This might be because of errors, delays, rudeness or difficulty getting in touch. You can do this whether or not you also want to challenge a decision. For more information about challenging benefit decisions and about complaining, see Problems with benefits and tax credits.

You can call the Carers Direct helpline on for confidential information and advice. The helpline is open from 9am to 8pm Monday to Friday, and from 11am to 4pm at weekends. The helpline is closed on bank holidays. Skip to navigation Skip to content Skip to footer. Top links Housing benefit. Top links Template letter to raise a grievance at work.

Top links Our pensions advice Write a letter to your creditors. Top links If you want a refund because of coronavirus Contact the consumer helpline Report to Trading Standards Problems with a used car Return faulty goods Buying a used car Your energy supply View all. How much could I get? Am I eligible for Carer's Allowance? How do I claim Carer's Allowance? Need help with your claim? More Carer's Allowance questions. Call the Carer's Allowance Unit on textphone: Visit GOV.

UK to download a claim form or claim online. Errors Please select a search type Please enter a valid postcode. What if my circumstances change? Our direct email address is contact ageuk. Looking for something else? Note: When you fill in the online claim form, the person you are looking after no longer needs to sign their consent. You could ask for help to complete the claim form from a local advice agency. You can find out about advice agencies in your area, by carrying out a postcode search on the Advicelocal website.

You will receive a written decision on your claim that tells you whether you have been awarded Carer's Allowance and from what date. Keep your decision letters as they can be useful to evidence your caring role if needed. You must do this before you appeal. This is called a mandatory reconsideration. It is important to challenge a decision or get advice as quickly as possible because there are time limits that generally mean you must take action within one month.

If you fall outside of this time limit then it may still be possible to challenge the decision. For more information you can see the " challenging a benefit decision " section of our website. If there is a change in your circumstances, it is important to report this as soon as possible to avoid any overpayment of benefit.

This might be starting a new job, a change in your earnings or a new pattern of work. It might also include breaks in caring. If you are worried or concerned about overpayments or if you have been contacted by the DWP, it is important to get some advice as soon as possible.

Do email us at This email address is being protected from spambots. Alternatively, you can contact your local advice organisation. You must have been providing 35 hours or more of care a week for at least 22 of the past 26 weeks up to eight weeks of a stay in hospital for either you or the person you are looking after can be included in the 22 weeks. The person you have been caring for must have been in receipt of a qualifying benefit for that period.

You must have been providing 35 hours or more of care a week for at least 14 of the past 26 weeks. The person you care for must have been in receipt of a qualifying benefit for that period. You can continue to be paid Carer's Allowance for a temporary period whilst you are abroad if you meet all of the following conditions:. In any other circumstances you can continue to be paid Carer's Allowance for up to four weeks as long as you have not had more than four weeks' break from caring in the last 26 weeks.

You may have had up to a further eight weeks' break from caring in the last 26 weeks if the reason for the break was because you or the person you care for were in hospital.

If the person you look after goes into hospital and you are no longer providing care for at least 35 hours a week , you can continue to get Carer's Allowance for up to 12 weeks or until their disability benefit stops.

If the person you look after goes into hospital and you continue to provide care for at least 35 hours a week , you can continue to get Carer's Allowance until their disability benefit stops. This means that if the person you look after is a child who is under 18 when they go into hospital, and you continue to provide care for at least 35 hours a week, you can continue to get Carer's Allowance for the whole time they are there.

The following benefits will usually stop after four weeks when someone moves into residential care and may stop sooner if they have been in hospital or residential care in the 28 days before this current stay :. However, there are certain circumstances when these benefits can continue, such as where the person is paying their own fees.

The Department of Social and Family affairs are flexible when assessing the need to provide full-time care and attention and consider the needs of the carer, and the person receiving the care. This means that the total household income is assessed to find out if you qualify for the grant and at what level of assistance. Your means are any income belonging to you or your spouse or partner, property except your own home or an asset that could bring in money or provide you with an income, for example occupational pensions or pensions or benefits from another country.

To carry out a means test, a Social Welfare Inspector will ask you for details of your means. The Inspector will do this at your local Social Welfare Office or may call to you at your home. They may also ask you to produce documents such as, accounts or bank statements.