Universal Credit

Everybody is worse off on Universal Credit.

 

A non-paid 7 day waiting period, followed by a 4 weeks assessment period, then a further 7 day waiting period before being paid any benefit money at the earliest causes severe financial hardship, creates and increases debt and leads to terrible levels of stress and anxiety.

 

A loan is offered to those who don't have the savings to take them through the 6 week minimum waiting period. This has to be repaid.

 

The first lesson someone learns from the Universal Credit is how to get into debt, or how to increase the debt one already has.

 

How does the delayed payment of essential benefits help the poor?

 

It doesn't.

 

At all.

Again, that is simply not true.

I do not believe that transitional protection is a loan, and so does not need to be paid back.

Here is what the IFS says.

https://www.ifs.org.uk/conferences/uc2011_jin.pdf

Perhaps now someone could help the OP, instead of bickering.

Again, that is simply not true.

 

I do not believe that transitional protection is a loan, and so does not need to be paid back.

Which just shows you are commenting on something you haven't even done any basic research on. Disappointing.

A minimum 6 week wait (often far longer) for the first payment of Universal Credit creates terrible debt, rent arrears and homelessness.

A financial advance is available to those who apply for it to cover this wait for the first payment, but it is a LOAN. It starts to be repaid from the very first UC payment. It reduces peoples monthly income from the very start of a Universal Credit claim, each and every month for up to a 12 month period.

Getting into debt is the first lesson that Universal Credit teaches those claiming it.

Surviving on a reduced even lower income than benefit level to pay off that debt is the second.

Which just shows you are commenting on something you haven't even done any basic research on. Disappointing.

 

A minimum 6 week wait (often far longer) for the first payment of Universal Credit creates terrible debt, rent arrears and homelessness.

 

A financial advance is available to those who apply for it to cover this wait for the first payment, but it is a LOAN. It starts to be repaid from the very first UC payment. It reduces peoples monthly income from the very start of a Universal Credit claim, each and every month for up to a 12 month period.

 

Getting into debt is the first lesson that Universal Credit teaches those claiming it.

 

Surviving on a reduced even lower income than benefit level to pay off that debt is the second.

I'm not talking about a financial advance . I am talking about transitional protection. That is not a loan.

The claim that everybody is worse off under Universal Credit is demonstrably untrue. I don't believe that it is helpful to make such claims on a thread where the OP will possibly be moving onto UC, as it could cause unnecessary worry.

I'm not talking about a financial advance . I am talking about transitional protection. That is not a loan.

 

The claim that everybody is worse off under Universal Credit is demonstrably untrue. I don't believe that it is helpful to make such claims on a thread where the OP will possibly be moving onto UC, as it could cause unnecessary worry.

Universal Credit has been designed primarily to cut the (in work) tax credits and (out of work) benefits bill. Everybody on it, in work and out of work, will eventually be worse off financially than under the old legacy benefits system. Transitional protection only applies to managed migration from the legacy benefits, and is a temporary fix as it erodes with time or can be ended by a change of circumstances.

Universal Credit wrecks lives, just as it was designed to do.

Universal Credit has been designed primarily to cut the (in work) tax credits and (out of work) benefits bill. Everybody on it, in work and out of work, will eventually be worse off financially than under the old legacy benefits system. Transitional protection only applies to managed migration from the legacy benefits, and is a temporary fix as it erodes with time or can be ended by a change of circumstances.

 

Universal Credit wrecks lives, just as it was designed to do.

You can believe that if you want, but the fact remains that you are not automatically going to be worse off under UC, it depends on personal circumstances as my first comment said.

I maintain that spreading the myth that everybody is worse off under UC is unhelpful, particularly in a thread where the OP may be moving to UC, hence why I challenged it.

Anyone currently claiming Housing benefit, tax credits and several other benefits will be worse off under UC, as currently, those benefits are not managed by the jobcentre, and claimants therefore cannot be subject to jobcentre sanctions.

Once on UC, all those benefits will be lumped in to UC, and so claimants will be subject to jobcentre sanctions- if sanctioned, they will lose their housing benefit, tax credits etc.

Those currently working and claiming housing benefit and/or tax credits due to low income, will, in addition to working their mimimum wage hours, then have to jump through numerous jobcentre hoops to keep those benefits. Those hoops could well include demands to attend jobcenter appointments during the hours they are supposed to be working (and being sanctioned if they fail to attend).

Many Landlords also refuse to take people on Universal Credit, so there will be more problems there.

Anyone currently claiming Housing benefit, tax credits and several other benefits will be worse off under UC, as currently, those benefits are not managed by the jobcentre, and claimants therefore cannot be subject to jobcentre sanctions.

 

Once on UC, all those benefits will be lumped in to UC, and so claimants will be subject to jobcentre sanctions- if sanctioned, they will lose their housing benefit, tax credits etc.

 

Those currently working and claiming housing benefit and/or tax credits due to low income, will, in addition to working their mimimum wage hours, then have to jump through numerous jobcentre hoops to keep those benefits. Those hoops could well include demands to attend jobcenter appointments during the hours they are supposed to be working (and being sanctioned if they fail to attend).

My missus has just had a bit of time "between jobs" she never had any problems re-arranging her job centre appointments around any job interviews she had arranged..just took a phone call to sort it out..

My missus has just had a bit of time "between jobs" she never had any problems re-arranging her job centre appointments around any job interviews she had arranged..just took a phone call to sort it out..

Under Universal Credit if a claimant cannot make a Jobcentre appointment, for any reason, they must not ring the Jobcentre. That would be too easy.

They must instead telephone the Universal Credit Service Centre and speak to a call centre customer adviser.

---------- Post added 16-01-2018 at 15:53 ----------

Here is what the IFS says.

 

https://www.ifs.org.uk/conferences/uc2011_jin.pdf

 

Perhaps now someone could help the OP, instead of bickering.

Conveniently, the IFS study DOES NOT take into account any waiting periods for the payment of Universal Credit benefits, which are considerably longer than under the old legacy benefits.

So an increase in debt to pay bills and rent is not even remotely acknowledged. Nor is a reduction in UC income to repay the advance payments which are necessary to survive the waiting periods.

This IFS report is a sham!

You realise that's not how it works right? You can't claim that universal credit always makes people worse off just based on people you know.

 

All I need to do is say I know people who have gone onto Universal Credit who are now better off and your argument completely disintegrates. As I said, some people are worse off, some people are better off.

 

There are calculators online so people can see how Universal Credit will affect them.

Well one thing's for sure, those who are currently getting severe disability allowance will lose it, so they will be nearly £80 a WEEK worse off. Also, now that Esther Mcvey is the new minister of DWP, I wonder what other additions she will want to add?

https://www.disabilitynewsservice.com/councils-could-have-to-pick-up-the-pieces-after-scrapping-of-severe-disability-premium/

The Government is now planning to transfer all people across onto Universal credit. (Before it was just new claiments and people in certain areas who went onto it.) It is has built in problems which have never been ironed out.

Nearly everyone will lose money, (Tory Minister for works and pensions, Esther MacVey, has admitted this,) including the disabled. It has been knowingly underfunded to save money. This is what people on UC have been saying for years, but the government has continually denied it.

Also, there is the minimum of the 5 week delay (used to be 6) where people are left with no money at all, (they stop the old benefit before the new one kicks in a minimum of 5 weeks later but often more) which has lead to people being made homeless when they can't pay their rent, and starving /using food banks. Use of foodbanks quadruples in areas with Universal Credit in place.

A lot of landlords refuse to take people on UC because they know of the many problems with it, and fear people will not be able to pay the rent. It will involve the working poor as well.

Several people I know who deal with benefits and will have to administer the new system, have been on government run training courses, and when they point out the glaring ambiguities and obvious problems with it, have had their concerns dismissed /ignored/ or are met with 'well we don't really know...'

It promises to be a nightmare.

Is this going to be this government's Poll tax moment with riots in the street?