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Diffuse Mesothelioma Payments Scheme 2008, ignored as capital?
Just a quick check to confirm that the DMPS 2008 compensation payment is ignored for 52 weeks for means tested benefits such as Pension Credit?
Cannot find the regulation that confirms this, but have found a hansard discussion on the recent amendments to the rates payable mentioning this and a questionable google search directing me to Social Security (Recovery of Benefits) Act 1997 which I’m not sure is relevant.
if the claimant (person with meso) is alive it should go in a PI Trust. and once the claimant does die, the trust ceases to exist the money falls into his estate and then the estate beneficiaries don’t have any capital ignored.
if the person with meso is already dead, then it cannot be ignored as it’s not a personal injury payment to a person injured….
Thanks for this.
I’m not sure if the payment has gone into a trust however, I believe the payment has gone directly to the client, which has been paid by the Barrow IIDB centre (DWP). This is the scheme where a claimant does not know where asbestos exposure occurred so cannot determine if it came from employment (form PWC1 completed to apply for this).
i assumed you were talking about the scheme for those who can’t trace employer/its insurer.
are you in fact talking about IIDB?
It’s the diffuse mesothelioma payments ‘2008 scheme’ as opposed to the DMPS, sorry for the confusion. Link for the two are here: https://www.gov.uk/diffuse-mesothelioma-payment
Sorry, I have only completed a couple of these payments for clients so have little experience in what the payments actually are. They are IIDB payments.
Our expert advice has come to the conclusion that based on R(SB)2/89 that personal injury should have its ordinary meaning and includes a disease and the intention stated by the Baroness from Hansard: Mesothelioma Lump Sum Payments (Conditions and Amounts) (Amendment) Regulations 2019 14 February 2019 Volume 795, the payments should be a personal injury payment and should be indefinitely ignored for a client over pension age and would be ignored for 52 weeks for a working age client.