I am a full time carer in receipt of carers allowance for my Autistic Son who receives DLA. I am also in receipt of lower rate DLA myself due to chronic arthritis in my hands.
I have been told that under the new PIP arrangements carers cannot receive PIP themselves as well as the person they care for. Does anyone know if this is the case? If so then I have no choice but to not claim PIP myself when the time for reassessment comes around so that my son can continue to receive his.
However, if his assessment comes first then presumably all I can do is write to DWP and tell them I'm miraculously cured before we put his claim form in. This is really quite an outrage if true as I very much need my own help physically but can support his neurological disability perfectly well arthritis or not!
I can see nothing in the PIP or Carers Allowance legislation that would preclude you from receiving both benefits together, however, the fact that you are providing care to your son will be taken into account when you are assessed, as an example if you stated that you could not prepare a meal for yourself but are known to provide a cooked meal for your son everyday, then this would likely cause problems.
Gordon
Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems
