Concerns have been raised over how thousands of legacy benefit claimants will cope as they are due to be moved to Universal Credit in the coming months.
Advice NI has released a report highlighting the worries of its advisors and benefit claimants regarding Universal Credit, with many saying they are concerned they may not be able to manage financially, fall into debt or rent arrears.
The report, titled Move to UC - Get Ready, and has been published ahead of 250,000 legacy benefit claims migrating to Universal Credit.
Read more: Cost of Living Crisis: Record number of households receiving Universal Credit in Northern Ireland
Along with the concerns of advisors and legacy benefit claimants, the report also found that a majority of Universal Credit claimants , 69%, had to take out an advanced loan when starting on the all-in-one benefit system and more than half, 53%, had fallen into rent arrears.
47% of Universal Credit clamants went into debt or needed to borrow money from their friends and family.
Managed migration to Universal Credit (UC) began in April in Northern Ireland, with 500 legacy benefit claimants in both Andersonstown & Enniskillen Jobs and Benefits Office areas contacted as part of an initial ‘Discovery Phase’, advising them that they have 3 months to move to Universal Credit.
Speaking at the launch of the research, Kevin Higgins, Head of Policy, Advice NI said: “This is an incredibly complex and far-reaching process, with many thousands of people with over 250,000 separate benefit awards set to be affected by ‘Move to UC’. In order to help ensure that advisers, Department for Communities and most importantly claimants are ready, we decided to conduct this piece of research, gathering insights into potential fears of claimants who will be affected, collating the experiences of current UC claimants and making sensible, practical recommendations which will help to ensure that people are effectively supported through the process.
“UC is like no other benefit we have seen before. It is a digital benefit which means people must apply for and manage their claim online. That will require claimants to have a level of digital skills as well as access to the Internet and a digital device. This will be a challenge for many. Other challenges involve the monthly Assessment Period, the five week wait for the first payment, the claimant commitment with ongoing conditionality and risk of sanctions.
“Our research found that independent advisers were worried about how claimants would manage financially and about them falling into debt and rent arrears. They were also worried about how people with poor digital skills or Internet access would handle the online nature of UC.”
76% of legacy benefit claimants who took part in the report said that they could see no positives of moving to Universal Credit, with 71% saying their main concern was a the five week wait for their first payment and 59% worrying they will get less money as a result of the switch.
One legacy claimant said: "Transferring is frightening andcan cause a lot of worry and stress so I would need a supportworker who could bring methrough all steps and who I couldcontact when I don’t understand something."
Just over half of claimants believed they would go into debt moving to Universal Credit and just under half were concerned about having access to a computer or IT skills in order to use the benefit system. This was also a concern for advisors who said that under the legacy benefit system they could contact departments on a claimants behalf, but they cannot under Universal Credit.
Advisors shared some of their concerns for claimants saying: "Low-paid new mums who qualify for Maternity Allowance and are then not entitled to any UC as there is no work allowance; had they qualified for SMP they would receive the work allowance and thus a top up of UC."
Another said: "Mental health sufferers cannot as a rule manage the requirement of legacy benefits but [with legacy benefits] at least advisers and CPN support can call on their behalf; with password protected Journals, this won’t happen in UC."
In response to these findings, Advice NI has proposed a number of recommendations, many of which can be implemented without any cost. For example, ensuring people are made fully aware of and have easy access to all the financial support available; clearly cautioning that some of this support is in the form of a loan that must be repaid; increasing awareness of options to waive or write-off recovery of existing benefit debt; and creating real-time access to UC staff so that independent advisers can escalate urgent cases immediately.
Kevin Higgins, Advice NI continued: “We know that ‘Move to UC’ has started, but it is phased and that means not everybody will be moved over right away.
“We also know that some claimants may now be thinking about whether they should move to Universal Credit before they receive their ‘Migration Notice’: our clear message is ‘don’t gamble on Universal Credit’. Comparing the amount of money someone would receive on Universal Credit as opposed to their current ‘legacy’ benefit(s) is often a complicated task, but there are some fundamental truths:
- While some people may be entitled to more money under Universal Credit than they receive in the ‘legacy’ benefits system, others will be entitled to less;
- People who voluntarily move from ‘legacy’ benefits to Universal Credit and find themselves worse off will not be able to return to their ‘legacy’ benefits and will simply be expected to cope with the loss of income at a time when the cost of living is steadily rising;
- People who wait until they receive their ‘Migration Notice’ will automatically avail of ‘Transitional Protection’ —a top-up payment to a claimant’s Universal Credit award to ensure that their award is equal to the amount they were receiving in the legacy system— should they find themselves in a position where they would be worse off.”
Anyone who is not sure about what UC will mean for them or what support is available, can seek independent advice by going to their local advice centre or calling the Advice NI FREEPHONE advice helpline 0800 915 4604.
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