The benefit is not means-tested, meaning how much you earn or how much you have in savings doesn’t affect how much you get.
Illustrative stock image of an older couple managing their finances at home. (Image: Getty)
Pensioners may be missing out on a benefit potentially worth nearly £6,000 per year – and it’s not means-tested. Attendance Allowance is a weekly payment from the Government that helps with extra costs for people with a disability or health condition severe enough to need someone to help look after them.
Attendance Allowance is available in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, but not in Scotland, which has an alternative scheme called the Pension Age Disability Payment. Attendance Allowance is paid at two different rates, with the amount successful claimants receive dependent on the level of care required due to the disability or health condition, the UK Government website explains. You could get £76.70 or £114.60 a week to help with personal support if both of the following apply:
- You have a physical disability, a mental disability, or a health condition
- You’re State Pension age or older
Attendance Allowance: How can you claim the benefit?
To receive it, the disability or health condition must be severe enough for the claimant to need help caring for themselves or for someone to supervise them, for their own or someone else’s safety. They must also have needed that help for at least 6 months
The £76.70 rate is given to people who require frequent help or constant supervision during the day, or supervision at night.
The £114.60 rate applies to those who need help or supervision throughout both day and night, or to those for whom a medical professional has said they’re nearing the end of life.
Other eligibility criteria apply, such as not being on certain other benefits.
The higher rate works out to £5,959 over the year, and given the considerable costs of care, it’s important that eligible people take advantage of the benefit as soon as possible – especially since it is not backdated.
MoneySavingExpert.com, the consumer finance website founded by money saving guru Martin Lewis, says it’s “one of the most underclaimed benefits”, and calls on people with support needs covered by the eligibility criteria to check whether they can benefit.
The benefit is not means-tested, meaning how much you earn or how much you have in savings doesn’t affect how much you get. Claimants have the latitude to spend the funds as they like.
Additionally, it’s not subject to tax, and therefore doesn’t affect tax status.
Being granted it may also allow claimants to access additional Pension Credit, Housing Benefit or Council Tax Reduction, bringing further savings as cost-of-living pressures continue to hit British households.
You can find out more about Attendance Allowance in England and Wales on the GOV.UK website. Information about claiming the benefit in Northern Ireland can be found here.