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Benefit cap after bereavement
Hello,
I suspect there’s no UC solution but just wanted to check. Client’s husband passed away, leaving her the sole parent of a number of dep children. She has no work history. Husband was working prior to death and so he would be exempt from the benefit cap through grace period, but I presume now that he’s died, he stops being part of the equation when considering whether she should be exempt from the benefit cap?
Any other thoughts welcomed…
The way I read the regulations is that the grace period continues notwithstanding his death. Reg 82(2) of the UC Regulations sets out when a grace period begins and 82(3) sets out the condition, namely the earnings during the previous 12 months. The key phrase to my mind is: “the claimant’s earned income or, if the claimant was a member of a couple, the couple’s combined earned income ...” The use of the word “was” suggests to me that the key fact is the claimant’s status as at that date, not later.
I think my reading also make sense in policy terms. The purpose of the grace period, I guess, is to give a family a fixed time to adjust to the effect the benefit cap will have. There seems no sensible reason why that time should be shortened because of bereavement - quite the opposite.
You are correct. The guidance is explicit about this. See page 3 here.