Thousands of Brits are this week receiving their first of the £900 cost of living payments dropping into their bank account from the Department for Work and Pensions.
The initial £301 pay out is being given to people who currently receive benefits and is aimed at helping with the rising cost of living. The payment has led to those on disability benefits like Personal Independence Payments (PIP) wondering if they would get the money, reports Lancs Live.
On BirminghamLive's Cost of Living Facebook page, one person asked: "If you're in receipt of PIP, do you get the £301 cost of living payment?" Another had a similar query, saying: "How come I didn't get a cost of living payment, I'm on PIP and haven't had anything." A number of other people are raising the same issue.
Read next: DWP responds after £150 cost of living payment paid early with recipients confused
The money started to be paid out on April 25 and could take to May 17 to be paid. Lots of people are expected to see the money drop into their accounts by the end of next week.
But what about support for people on disability payments?
Eligibility rules for the £301 payment and the two further instalments of £300 and £299 coming later in the financial year explain that people need to be on the following benefits within certain qualifying dates:
- Universal Credit
- Pension Credit
- income-based Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA)
- income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
- Income Support
- Working Tax Credit
- Child Tax Credit
All of these benefits are means-tested with the amount given being based on a person's wages or savings. Other types of ESA and JSA don't qualify for the money and neither do disability benefits such as PIP, as none of those are means-tested and can be claimed regardless of any other income.
In January, the Government was asked to provide a cost of living payment to disabled people before April this year. DWP minister Tom Pursglove said: "The Government announced in the Autumn Statement that it will provide a further Disability Cost of Living Payment of £150 in 2023/24 to people in receipt of certain disability benefits such as Personal Independence Payment (PIP) or Disability Living Allowance (DLA). This is in addition to the £150 payment already paid during 2022.
"The Disability Cost of Living Payment can be received in addition to the other cost of living payments of up to £900 for households on means-tested benefits and £300 for pensioners."
Who gets the disability cost of living payment and when?
You may be entitled to a Disability Cost of Living Payment of £150 if you get any of the following benefits on a certain date:
- Attendance Allowance
- Constant Attendance Allowance
- Disability Living Allowance for adults
- Disability Living Allowance for children
- Personal Independence Payment (PIP)
- Adult Disability Payment (in Scotland)
- Child Disability Payment (in Scotland)
- Armed Forces Independence Payment
- War Pension Mobility Supplement
At present, the only timeframe known for this payment is summer 2023. With summer starting at the solstice on June 21, it seems a reasonable assumption that the payment will be in July or August. But no specific dates have yet been announced.
Last year's similar payment for disabled people was in September, with some only just receiving that £150 sum when later found to have been eligible for it. A spokesperson said: "The DWP regularly reviews people's entitlements to ensure they receive the correct payments. In this case, people were identified who were retrospectively entitled to September 2022's Disability Cost of Living payment. This could be due to a change of benefit circumstances or a request for backdating when their claim is processed. We undertake these exercises periodically even if the claimant did not contact us to inform us of a missing payment."
Your payment might also come later if you change the account your benefit or tax credits are paid into. You will still be paid the cost of living payment automatically, the DWP said.
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