Housing costs under UC - transitional protection

Hi,

I'm on IB ESA and was very lucky to have become an owner occupier recently. I have various service charges to pay

For reasons that are hard to explain I'm actaully not that happy where I live and will probably want to sell up in three or so years from now. I hope I'm not on UC then but if I am I'll likely have transitional protection.

I know it's all a bit premature given the timescale but my understanding is that I could lose transitional protection if I moved to a different local authority but only if there is a change in circumstnaces.

My question is does having UC cover my service charges mean a change of circumstances as I would effectively be claiming the housing element? As in if there is no housing element, then there's no change in circumstances when moving to a neighbouring authority?

It just makes me wonder whether it's worth claiming this element as my service charges are only about £30/month.

Hi Gary,

I am paying the service charges, along with insurnace. This comes to about £30/month.

It's just the entitledto calculator tells me that my ESA would be higher were I to declare this to the DWP. I would have done so originally but didn't realise this was possible.

I would like to apply for UC next year, in part because I want to make relatively modest overpayments on my mortgage and not be under any risk of deprivation of capital. I am under the £6k capital limit.

Under ESA this isn't possible. But the UC are drafted differently.

See the part in reference to notional capital on the followling link.

www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2013/376/part/6

I think I may be jumping the gun somewhat in regards to leaving as it's unlikely I'll be able to sell this place anytime soon. I am not happy here as I experience a lot of antisocial behaviour and it is affecting my health quite badly.

My concern over the service charge is were I to finally claim UC and get transitional protection, would that transitional protection be put at risk were I to move to another local authority by virtue of this £30/month housing element that I'd be claiming as there would then be a change in my UC claim with my new place? This wouldn't be the case without the service charge right? There would then be no possible change in circumstances?

Hi Gary,

Regarding the reference I made to paying off debt.

I asked the DWP to give me permission to use my ESA to make overpayments to my mortgage.

The decision maker told me that as long as I wasn't using capital to pay down the mortgage, it's allowed and I don't require any permission.

I'll be honest, given some of the misinformation I've been given by decision makers in the past, I don't believe to him a degree.

He even said that benefit was neither income nor capital, which I thought quite odd, as benefit clearly is a form of income in law.

I am concerned as I also learnt that calls by decision makers are not recordedd, however notes were made. I will try my best to get them under GDPR. What do you make of his advice and the decision he made?