stepping over the gap

[blackrose]

Thanks. I don't think those with savings of over £16k are entitled to 6 months JSA?

 

I guess I should have been less responsible, not bothered to save money and blown my savings on drugs, booze, prossies and gambling. Then I could have just thrown myself on the state!

Edited November 8, 2015 by blackrose

[Southern Star]

Thanks. I don't think those with savings of over £16k are entitled to 6 months JSA? I guess I should have been less responsible, not bothered to save and blown my money on drugs, booze, prossies and gambling, then I could have thrown myself on the state!

Regardless of savings, you should get 6 months of contribution-based JSA, because of the NI contributions you have made. It's income-based based JSA you aren't entitled to. Might be worth you having a Google?

[GreyLady]

Thanks. I don't think those with savings of over £16k are entitled to 6 months JSA?

 

I guess I should have been less responsible, not bothered to save money and blown my savings on drugs, booze, prossies and gambling. Then I could have just thrown myself on the state!

Yep and walked into the job centre drunk smelling of fags and wearing a rosey smile.

 

haha

 

EDIT FROM moneysavingsexpert :Income based £6000 for the full amount, £6000 to £16000 for a reduced amount. Savings over £16000 no payment.

Edited November 8, 2015 by GreyLady

[Jess--]

 

A brief Google shows its a helluvalot more complicated than that. I've just had a brief read here, for example.

 

http://england.shelter.org.uk/get_advice/housing_benefit_and_local_housing_allowance/what_is_housing_benefit/housing_benefit_calculations

 

 

It's perverse that your LHA tapers off as your income rises. Agreed this takes away the incentive to work. But I can't think of an answer to this benefit trap, and neither can anyone else or it wouldn't exist.

 

years ago when I was trying to get out of the benefit trap seemed to be that for every £1 you earned (before tax / ni) meant losing £1 from benefits, so until you were able to earn around 25% more than your benefits (to allow for tax / ni) you were actually worse off financially and probably having to spend more day to day (travel etc).

 

I ended up on benefits when I had to leave a training course. the reason I left the training course was because after a change in rules being on the training course didn't count towards any sort of a discount on council tax (even though it did allow something in housing benefit) and my council tax bill was £100 more per year than I was getting on the training course, their suggestion was to take a part time job even though the training course was already taking 40 hours per week (50 if you included travelling time). they failed to realise that taking a part time job would have removed my housing benefit instantly making me around £2500 a year worse off.

 

when I left the course and went onto benefits I actually ended up £1.15 a week better off.

 

I will say that I found the reality of being on benefits (even then) you exist... you don't live, an unexpected £100 bill would wipe out all of your "spare cash" for several months.

 

To get off benefits I ended up cheating by still claiming while setting up a business and then signed off as soon as the business could support me, the (then) DSS were aware of what I was doing thanks to off the record conversations, they knew I was planning ongetting a business going and ploughing every penny back into it until it was stable before signing off, their comments were "we didn't have this conversation, but you may find we don't look closely at your file for the next 6 months" (in other words we know what you're doing but will turn a blind eye for 6 months as long as it gets you off our books)

 

Sure enough I had signed off in under 6 months and have never received another penny in any form of benefit.

Edited November 8, 2015 by Jess--

[CDS]

TWBM, Good point. I will look into this idea of working and living outside of London, and the whole cheaper rent thing.

Must admit, at present, I favour either renting a boat while I save money to buy, or exercising patience while saving up. Buying a cheap boat, which might drain money from my plans to buy, might mean it takes longer to make it viable. Information is what I asked for, and I'm getting plenty. Cheers everyone.

If you want a look about Mick,come up to Milton Keynes and I have a few mates living

in the style your after,be good to see you and from your point of view,you never stop

learning.PM me if its easier?l

Edited November 8, 2015 by CDS

[magictime]

 

years ago when I was trying to get out of the benefit trap seemed to be that for every £1 you earned (before tax / ni) meant losing £1 from benefits, so until you were able to earn around 25% more than your benefits (to allow for tax / ni) you were actually worse off financially and probably having to spend more day to day (travel etc).

 

That was the situation when I first started work in the mid-90s; by the time I'd covered my train fare to work, I was worse off than I had been on the dole.

 

As I've always understood it, that was one of the problems tax credits were intended to solve. The 'taper rate' was pretty generous, so that you only lost something like 55p for every £1 you earned. Hence when tax credits were introduced in the early 00s, my family was suddenly thousands of pounds a year better off and I was seeing a definite financial benefit from working.

 

It's depressing to find the 'trap' still exists for some people. Whether this is simply because tax credits never worked as well for people without children, or because of more recent cuts, or what, I don't know. I know the tension is still there for policymakers between strengthening work incentives by keeping taper rates low, and having higher taper rates so as not to 'waste' money by paying out benefits to people who don't strictly 'need' them because they're earning enough to live on.

[blackrose]

EDIT FROM moneysavingsexpert :Income based £6000 for the full amount, £6000 to £16000 for a reduced amount. Savings over £16000 no payment.

 

Thanks, I thought that was the case.

Regardless of savings, you should get 6 months of contribution-based JSA, because of the NI contributions you have made. It's income-based JSA you aren't entitled to.

 

I don't think I'm entitled to contribution-based JSA either.

Edited November 8, 2015 by blackrose

[MtB]

 

years ago when I was trying to get out of the benefit trap seemed to be that for every £1 you earned (before tax / ni) meant losing £1 from benefits, so until you were able to earn around 25% more than your benefits (to allow for tax / ni) you were actually worse off financially and probably having to spend more day to day (travel etc).

 

I ended up on benefits when I had to leave a training course. the reason I left the training course was because after a change in rules being on the training course didn't count towards any sort of a discount on council tax (even though it did allow something in housing benefit) and my council tax bill was £100 more per year than I was getting on the training course, their suggestion was to take a part time job even though the training course was already taking 40 hours per week (50 if you included travelling time). they failed to realise that taking a part time job would have removed my housing benefit instantly making me around £2500 a year worse off.

 

when I left the course and went onto benefits I actually ended up £1.15 a week better off.

 

I will say that I found the reality of being on benefits (even then) you exist... you don't live, an unexpected £100 bill would wipe out all of your "spare cash" for several months.

 

To get off benefits I ended up cheating by still claiming while setting up a business and then signed off as soon as the business could support me, the (then) DSS were aware of what I was doing thanks to off the record conversations, they knew I was planning ongetting a business going and ploughing every penny back into it until it was stable before signing off, their comments were "we didn't have this conversation, but you may find we don't look closely at your file for the next 6 months" (in other words we know what you're doing but will turn a blind eye for 6 months as long as it gets you off our books)

 

Sure enough I had signed off in under 6 months and have never received another penny in any form of benefit.

 

 

Enormous respect for achieving that. Greenied.

[Mickonearth]

CDS, that's very kind. I'll pm you about it.

[Southern Star]

 

I don't think I'm entitled to contribution-based JSA either.

Contribution based JSA depends on having made sufficient NI payments over the last two years, there are online calculators which will tell you if you qualify. Equally you could set yourself up in some type of self-employed work in which case you should qualify for working tax credits.

 

It's always seemed grossly unfair to me that two people can do the same job, earning the same money, but one will qualify for state benefits and one won't, should they lose their jobs, simply because one has pissed his money up against the wall while the other has been careful and prudent and put aside savings for a rainy day.

[Mickonearth]

Ah, can't use the pm facility, as I haven't posted enough threads yet.I'll remedy that though.

[Southern Star]

Ah, can't use the pm facility, as I haven't posted enough threads yet.I'll remedy that though.

Should be able to with 12 posts.

[Mickonearth]

Yeah, it was just my technophobia playing up again.

SouthernStar, plenty of work to be had around Rugby? Can you tell me more please? Rugby's handy enough by train to possibly make it work with the parenting situation...

[blackrose]

Contribution based JSA depends on having made sufficient NI payments over the last two years, there are online calculators which will tell you if you qualify. Equally you could set yourself up in some type of self-employed work in which case you should qualify for working tax credits.

 

It's always seemed grossly unfair to me that two people can do the same job, earning the same money, but one will qualify for state benefits and one won't, should they lose their jobs, simply because one has pissed his money up against the wall while the other has been careful and prudent and put aside savings for a rainy day.

 

If it's just two years then perhaps I am entitled. I'll have to check - thanks.

[Southern Star]

SouthernStar, plenty of work to be had around Rugby? Can you tell me more please? Rugby's handy enough by train to possibly make it work with the parenting situation...

It depends what type of work you do, or would be prepared to do, but a large part of the UK distribution hub is based in the east Midlands and there always seems to be plenty of work going there, probably the best thing would be to do a job search on Indeed.com or something similar.

[Mickonearth]

Thanks, I'll check it out.

[Alan de Enfield]

 

If it's just two years then perhaps I am entitled. I'll have to check - thanks.

 

Free prescriptions are available to anyone - ((employed or not) depending on what is wrong with you - eg Diabetics get free prescriptions.

 

You can get discounted prescriptions by buying a 'bulk, prepayment card'. Its £104 per annum and allows you unlimited prescriptions. If you are on frequent medication it can save you a fortune.

If you have one prescription per month the Pre-Payment works out cheaper.

 

http://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/1127.aspx

 

Also explains what benefits etc grant free prescriptions.

 

It is interesting that very few people actually pay for their prescriptions :

 

90.6% of prescriptions are dispensed free of charge. Of the 9.4% of prescriptions that are paid for, 5.2% are through cash payments and the remaining 4.2% are covered by pre-payment certificates, which provide a cap on the maximum people have to pay. These certificates cost £29.10 for three months and £104 for a year.

 

Source : The Kings Fund / Pharmaceutical Journal.

Edited November 8, 2015 by Alan de Enfield

[magictime]

It is interesting that very few people actually pay for their prescriptions :

 

90.6% of prescriptions are dispensed free of charge. Of the 9.4% of prescriptions that are paid for, 5.2% are through cash payments and the remaining 4.2% are covered by pre-payment certificates, which provide a cap on the maximum people have to pay. These certificates cost £29.10 for three months and £104 for a year.

 

This is going to sound pedantic, but...

 

It doesn't follow from the fact that very few prescriptions are paid for, that very few people pay for their prescriptions. The reason that 90% of prescriptions are dispensed free of charge is not that anywhere near 90% of people are entitled to free prescriptions, but that those who are entitled (pensioners being the prime example) tend to need far more prescriptions than those who aren't.