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Forum Home  →  Discussion  →  Other benefit issues  →  Thread

Severe Disablement Allowance. Hospital Downrating between 2001 and 2006. 

JAS1
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Advice Worker, Gaddum Centre

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Total Posts: 367

Joined: 14 February 2017

Hello,

I have a client who has tasked me with investigating a query of his which dates from 16 years ago!

He spent a long time in hospital during the period 2001 - 2006. He was on SDA and I have seen from his bank statements and also from documentation the DWP sent to me he was getting around £15 - £16 per week (varying) ‘hospital downrating’ during this period.

I have done some research and I can see that this was abolished in 2003 -

“Hospital downrating
With immediate effect, claimants in hospital
for up to 52 weeks will not have their benefit
downrated after 6 weeks as before. In
addition, those already in hospital who have
had their benefits downrated will have the full
rate restored from 21 May 2003.
The measures will apply to Income
Support,Minimum Income Guarantee,Pension
Credit, Housing Benefit and Council Tax
Benefit, Bereavement and Widowed Parent’s
Allowance (and widows’ benefits), Incapacity
Benefit, Severe Disablement Allowance and
Retirement Pension.”
https://www.rightsnet.org.uk/pdfs/lasa_review_98.pdf

I asked DWP to send me the rules from this time but they didn’t. Client feels short changed. I can see where he is coming from as the hospital rate is low. Were people just living on 15 quid a week?

Also his rate didn’t go back up until 2006 judging by the information DWP have sent to me. Should his rate have not gone back up to full rate from 2003 (as the above link seems to suggest)?

Cheers

Jon (CANY)
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Welfare benefits - Craven CAB, North Yorkshire

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Total Posts: 1362

Joined: 16 June 2010

I think those who had been affected by the 6 week rule could have their benefit restored when that rule was abolished - but not if they also fell under the 52 week reduction rule, which was still in place.

As a start if you want to dig up the relevant Statutory Instruments, this page refers to the “revocation of the Social Security (Hospital In-Patients) Regulations 1975 (S.I. 1975/555) on 10th April 2006 by the Social Security (Hospital In-Patients) Regulations 2005 (S.I. 2005/3360), from which date the benefits of hospital in-patients are no longer down-rated.”

JAS1
forum member

Advice Worker, Gaddum Centre

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Total Posts: 367

Joined: 14 February 2017

Thanks Jon. I will look in to this