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Pension Credit suspended or otherwise when awaiting renewal award for AA??
I thought that this would have been an easy answer to find. The PS are unable to give a definitive answer.
I am assisting a lady (70), complete her AA renewal pack which she received last November but decided that it served better use as a place mat on her table!
Her current AA award (Day & Night care needs) ends on the 22nd May (two year award based on the care needs appertaining to Arthritis).
Her Guaranteed Pension Credit AIP is due to end some three weeks later - 12th June.
Given the fact that AA/DLA/PIP awards are now taking longer than normal to find their way through the system, I am concerned that she may not hear anything about the AA award until well after the AIP ceases. Her entitlement to GPC is only due to her having this award in place. Without it her income will exceed her Appropriate Amount due to the loss of her premiums.
Whilst there is the normal 3 month backdating of GPC, what would happen if the AA award took longer than the 3 months? Can I make an application/renewal of her PC and have it held in abeyance until the decision about her AA award is made?
Also as her AA will cease before the AIP comes to an end, will the GPC be suspended or terminated as from May?
Ideally I am looking obviously to find a way to ensure that there is no loss of GPC (that is assuming that she does eventually receive an AA award at some time in the future.
However looking at it from the point of view of the PS, they would only allow a claim WHEN the AA award is in place, so would assume, quite rightly that all monies from PC will cease as from May as it is a change of circumstance.
Thanks in anticipation
In my experience DLA and AA decision are being made pretty quickly as they are still decided under the old regime and therefore don’t go to ATOS/Capita for medical assessment. I have had renewal decisions for both through in under a month.
If this is different in your area though you need to put in a “stockpiled” claim for PC when/if current award ends due to AA ending stating that you are awaiting AA renewal decision. Then assuming AA is reawarded further down the line you can make a new claim for PC and ask for it to be backdated to the date of the previous claim as long as you do this within one month of the AA decision.
I’m not sure if the AIP is relevant, I thought an AIP only meant that the claimant did not have to declare changes to their ‘retirement provison’. What is and isn’t ‘Retirement Provision’ is defined in s.7 (6) of the SPC act 2002 and doesn’t include AA. I think that the claimant will have to notify PC as soon as her AA stops (as per the ‘Hinchy’ case)
In my experience DLA and AA decision are being made pretty quickly as they are still decided under the old regime and therefore don’t go to ATOS/Capita for medical assessment. I have had renewal decisions for both through in under a month.
If this is different in your area though you need to put in a “stockpiled” claim for PC when/if current award ends due to AA ending stating that you are awaiting AA renewal decision. Then assuming AA is reawarded further down the line you can make a new claim for PC and ask for it to be backdated to the date of the previous claim as long as you do this within one month of the AA decision.
Thanks Jo
In the main new and renewal claims for DLA/AA are taking upwards of 10/15 weeks to come through for those that do not require an assessment to take place. Unfortunately the lady I am helping had to undergo two home assessments. One in 2010 when she made her first claim (aged 66), and again in 2012 when it was the first of the biannual renewals (at age 68). The first took 10 months to resolve and the renewal took just under 6 months.
That was my thought too, to put in a ‘protective’ PC claim when the current one expires in May due to the anticipated loss and renewal application for AA.
Many thanks for the help
I’m not sure if the AIP is relevant, I thought an AIP only meant that the claimant did not have to declare changes to their ‘retirement provison’. What is and isn’t ‘Retirement Provision’ is defined in s.7 (6) of the SPC act 2002 and doesn’t include AA. I think that the claimant will have to notify PC as soon as her AA stops (as per the ‘Hinchy’ case)
Thanks Pete
I believe that you are entirely correct. It is my belief that as soon as someone thinks that they may no longer be entitled to GPC due to the loss of a relevant benefit that creates additional premiums, they must notify the PS immediately even though the AIP is still ‘running’.
Many thanks for your help