Hi all
Hope you are all well.
Does anyone know if incapacity benefit is only paid for a specific time?
I have been on it nearly a year and wondered if it would soon be coming to an end?
I understand you can work upto 16 hours whilst being on it without it affecting the benefit, but another question I have is …Is there a limit you can earn in those 16 hours?
I work on commission so some weeks I may earn more than others.
Any help would be appreciated.
Take care
Angie
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Hi angie
Not sure I’m of any use to answer your question. I’m on incapacity benefit and have to go for a medical tomorrow. Feel humiliated to have to do it to be honest. I was diagnosed 21 dec 2006 supposedly dcis had mastectomy and recon done 30 jan only to find that it was invasive grade 3 so needed chemo and also her 2 +++ so herceptin too. Also on tamoxifen. I was really ill with chemo from walking in the door getting back from hospital I threw up for a week each time. The chemo has damaged my liver, my heart and my joints are totally knackered. I hurt so much in the morning i can’t bend my fingers or walk my recon implant needs replacing because its slipped, it should have been pumped up but with the chemo no invasive procedures allowed so it sunk to one corner and is sticking out. Quite painful actually!! the op to replace my implant was cancelled ist time because of liver damage and cancelled last time because of high blood pressure (never had hat before all this 265/156 very high. Anyway apparently I have to do this to justify my reason for being of fwork!!! I was asked to attend a pathway to work interview I spoke to them and one lady talked about a benefit you could claim of 40 pound per week so long as you worked over 16 hours and earnt less than 15k, I’m not really sure about benefits but appauld that I have to go and give them a peep show to prove the fact I’m receiving treatment for cancer.
Don’t know what to expect, just know i feel sick at the thought of going xxx
Sorry not helped you much there, but it was good to have a rant xx
love Scottydog Trace
Hello Angie
In response to your question regarding Incapacity Benefit, I don’t think that there is a time limit at the moment, but periodically the DWP may require you to attend a medical, or they may even have someone come to your home to speak with you.
Regarding the work - yes you can work up to 16 hours - it is preferable to work just under that, then that way your Incapacity Benefit it not touched - but in all probability you will have to do it through a system called “New Deal”. It is a scheme whereby you are attached to someone within the job centre, they help with setting you up into the scheme, they help with CV, and you would be able to look for jobs within the job centre as well as through the local papers. If you did go onto the New Deal scheme, it only lasts for a year - so therefore you would only be allowed to work up to 16 hours and not have your benefit reduced for 12 months only, you then have to come off the scheme - wait for another 12 months and then start all over again on the New Deal scheme.
Hope that this is of some help to you, but if you need any more clarification the Incapacity Benefits advisor at the local job centre should be able to quide you in the right direction.
Take care
Love Ruth xx
Hi Ladies
Thanks for your answers.
My job has been left open for the past 12 months but they are now putting pressure on me for an answer if I am returning.
I have asked them to reduce my hours (I used to have to do a minimum of 30 but quite often did nearer 50!!!)
There is no way I would be able to manage the hours as I do have other complaints as well as this bloody disease!
They are not wanting to budge and I am really not sure if I could hack the pressure anyway,
I am in a real quandary as to what to do for the best.
Good luck Scottydog, I have everything crossed for you, can you let us know how you get on.
Take care
Angie
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i have just started on incapacity, but i can only get it whilst i can provide sick notes!!! its not on really is it
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I didn’t get a penny as I had a 3 month gap in NI dating back to 2003 when I had to take time out of work to look after my late dad. I worked out before Christmas that this illness has cost us about 8k in savings as we had just started a business 6 weeks before I was diagnosed so everything was in its infancy. I don’t know what we would have done without having money in the bank to pay the bills etc.
Thankfully I’ve found a new job on quite a good salary and I start tomorrow. I really need to put the money back in the bank as it would scare me if I got sick again and we had nothing to fall back on. I know IB is only about £56 a week, but it would have really helped us. Believe it or not when I was chasing up my failed claim, someone from the DWP said to me on the phone that BC was no excuse for trying to get benefits. I was absolutley furous given that my forms were sent to 5 different offices.
I’ve been on incapacity benefit since 2004 due to secondaries and had to give up work because of my health. I initially had to provide sick notes but haven’t done for quite a while now.
No one from the DWP has contacted me or asked me to attend an interview but I’m not sure whether that’s because I have secondaries?
Pinkdove
Cherub i am sure as a carer you should have had your ni covered, you should really check up on that, but you can pay to cover it if you want to, that way if your up to date they have to pay you as you are entitled to it xxxxxx, Pinkdove, what a shame that you have secondaries, lets hope that they don’t put you through an interview, its bad enough having this disease without having to put up with more crap!!! did you tell them that you had secondaries?
Alisonxxxxxx
Hello Angie
Here are some links to the advice from Direct gov . This has all the latest figures for amounts payable and hours which can be worked under permitted work etc.
direct.gov.uk/en/DisabledPeople/FinancialSupport/DG_10016082
direct.gov.uk/en/DisabledPeople/FinancialSupport/DG_10023130
direct.gov.uk/en/DisabledPeople/FinancialSupport/DG_10020667
Hope this helps answer some questions
Wynn
Hi Alison
Thanks for your post. I think I did tell them that I had secondaries at the time because with my primary diagnosis I went back to work because I was well enough and it really wasn’t an issue at that time (12.5 years ago). I would imagine because I’ve had secondaries since 2004 that they would have called me for an interview before now.
The worst ones we had in convincing I wasn’t able to work were our insurance company and my private pension people. They both ended up apologising in the end for putting me through unnecessary stress with the Norwich Union sending me a huge bouquet of flowers! Can’t be bad!!!
Pinkdove
god this post brings back memories! i had to fight to get my benefits all the way through this illness and i was hounded day and night by my insurance company despite having sent sick notes copies etc which incidently used to cost me 20 everytime i requested one from the doc! im now recieving 17 extra a week as ive got lymphodemia and the dla allowance is for the lower rate. i had to attend an interview at the dhss and they sent back the wrong notes which according to them i couldnt function in the mornings without having a drink !!! (im teetotal)!! so you can imagine how cross i was ,also it said i was unable to take a simple telephone message, !! so check up that they actually have the right notes before accepting any rubbish they may say about you ! to this day ive not recieved an appology or my total benefit returned to me despite appeals. i wish you well, just remember not to walk out of the medical properly as this will be classed as your cabable of work !!! lynn xx
I rang my local JobCentre Plus this afternoon, and after answering a whole s***load of questions, the guy I spoke to said he saw no reason why I shouldn’t get it. I have to supply a medical certificate, and proof of my hospital stay etc. He said he would post it out today, so I should get it Monday or Tuesday. He never mentioned a medical, so I’ll have to wait and see what happens.
Hi Angie and Aroma
Well I went for the medical on Monday, where it was pointed out that it would consist of going through the answers to the questions I’d given on the form that had been filled in and returned to them by my McMilan nurse. It would then involve a full physical examination at the end of it. I was asked what evidence of could provide to “back up my Story”!!! of illness. I had taken letters of appointments to do with muga scans for the herceptin and also letters relating to the scans I had on my liver and neck lymph site. I also had my pathology report with me. He asked if he could see that and copied that to put in my file. Having read the pathology, he promptly sat down and said you may go now. I asked about the examination. He said there is no need. It is my decision. Not sure what all that means to be honest. At least its over and done with!!!
I will wait to hear from them … in the mean time treatment time again next week. They make you feel like the lowest of the low. i have always worked and paid my taxes, I’m only claiming what I’m entitled to get but boy do they make you feel guilty. Trust me I’d rather be at work and non of this …
Big hugs to anyone facing this ordeal at the moment
Love
Scottydog (Trace)
Hi, I also cant get incapacity benifit because of not haveing enough national insurance contributions, was self employed but on small earnings and have been paying vulantary contributions only. but i was still entilted to recieve full national insurance contributions credited by them which means when i have enough i will be able to get the payment benifit. Its worth applying still even if you dont get any payments as youll still be credited with the contributions. I gave them a sick note for 4 mths initally and have just had a letter from them saying i wont have to provide any more sick notes as they have written to my GP to confrim DX of BC . I have primary BC.
All the Best
Lindiloo x
do you know i still have tp provide them with a sick note everytime mine runs out despite them knowing about my lymphodemea, and my appeal letter came back this week which has made ma feel even more down and fed up. i really didnt want to be off work this long ,and was never expecting to get lymphodemie as id done so well up till now. now i just feel so guilty that im not working and contributing to this country despite always working even when my kids were small. and why dont they get these layabouts that have never worked in to work ?!! makes my blood boil that us ladies that didnt ask to be n this situation have to fight for our rights, as well as our lives!!! . lynn xx
Well Said Lynn, like you i have worked all my life, 10 days off sick (excepting for having my children) in 27 years, always paid full stamp, yet i am made to feel like a fraud! it makes me so mad, i really think they should make it easier for people who have had / have cancer, and they know that some of the treatments are very invasive, yet they make us beg!
Alisonxxx
Hi everybody
I have just applied for Incapacity Benefit. Been off work since June and had full pay for 6 months and then I am supposed to get half pay for 6 months (work for NHS). HR sent me a form for IB and still awaiting any info on what I’ll get.
I need to go back to work for money reasons - kids at uni, bills etc and hope to go back about May.
Liz xx
Hi everyone, this whole issue causes us so much stress and sucks the life out of us - the energy we do have is wasted dealing with dwp and insurance. I really resent the fact that we work all our days and pay a fortune in insurances only to be made feel like beggars. As far as I am aware even if you do get IC your tax code gets adjusted when you get back to work to pay the gov back - have I got this wrong? Seems it’s better to have been on benefits since leaving school present with a ‘social’ problem and then you are acccepted for everything. I think we should get together and write to our MP’s in force to get something done about this. Our fight is hard enough without this crap. My income runs out in March and I will have to go back to survive . My whole view of life is being challenged by this experience having been a support worker for 20 years helping others the least I expected was a little help when I needed it. Doesn’t seem to work like that and I am totally dissallusioned - oh I am so full of anger, sorry, but really it stinks.
Sorry for the rant - just had run in with insurance co.
Mags X
Incapacity benefit is classed as taxable income so you are liable for tax at 22p in £. This is why they amend your tax code. I know it sucks
Marilyn
hello all well ive had my date for my appeal and am bust getting my papers ready, i have a mediator that is going to speak for me on the day , i think its a good idea as we can all get bogged down with all the official talk! ill let you know if i win but im not too hopeful. lynn x