Kath Wilson
Maybe you’ve heard of Attendance Allowance and decided that you wouldn’t be eligible, or maybe you simply haven’t heard about it. Either way, if you’ve reached state retirement age and you have any form of physical or mental disability that means you need help in your everyday life, it might be worthwhile reading on.
Basically, Attendance Allowance is a benefit paid to help those eligible to live a more comfortable life. It is available if you’re over retirement age and your disability is severe enough for you to need help with your personal care, or someone to check regularly on your safety. To qualify, you must have needed help for at least six months. The rules are slightly different for someone with a terminal illness.
There are two other things you might want to know. The first is that Attendance Allowance is not means tested; if you qualify, you are entitled to it irrespective of your personal circumstances. The second is that you don’t have to spend the allowance on care and there is definitely no need for you to have a designated carer. The allowance is there simply to make your life a little easier; you can choose how you spend it.
Attendance Allowance is currently paid at two rates: £61.50 per week if you need frequent help or constant supervision during the day, or supervision at night, and £92.40 per week if you need help or supervision throughout both day and night.
How do you claim? This bit isn’t as easy as perhaps it might be – there’s a 30-page form to fill in and it comes with 12 pages of guidance notes! It might also be useful for you to know that in my experience first applications are quite often rejected. If this happens to you, don’t let it put you off because you can appeal the decision – and many appeals are successful.
If you feel that you might qualify but the application process sounds just too daunting, please talk to me – Kath Wilson – because I’ve had a lot of experience with Attendance Allowance applications, and I may be able to help you. Please also talk to me if you think you might qualify but you aren’t sure. I can’t give you a yes or no answer – only the government assessors can do that – but I may be able to give you an idea of whether it’s worth submitting a claim.
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Forty-Three Newsletter • Number 520 • August 2022
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