Could You Get Attendance Allowance?
Attendance Allowance is a UK welfare benefit available to people who have reached state pension age who need help caring for themselves due to illness or disability. If you haven’t yet reached state pension age, the equivalent benefit is Personal Independence Payment or PIP. It is thought that millions of older people who would be eligible for Attendance Allowance are not currently receiving it.
I recently helped an elderly friend submit an application for Attendance Allowance, so in this post I thought I would set out how the application process works and share some tips and advice based on my (thankfully successful) experience of claiming it.
But first, let’s deal with the basics…
Table of Contents
How Much Is It?
Attendance Allowance is paid at two different rates according to how much help and care you need.
The lower rate (currently £58.70 a week) is paid to people who need frequent care throughout the day OR night
The higher rate (currently £87.65 a week) is paid if you need frequent care throughout the day AND night, or if you are terminally ill.
Payments are normally made every four weeks direct to your bank account. The money is yours to spend as you wish to make your life a bit easier.
It is worth noting that you do not need to have someone currently caring for you in order to claim. Eligibility is based on your need for care rather than whether you are actually receiving it.
Another important point is that Attendance Allowance is not means-tested – eligibility is based purely on your care needs. Also, it is not taxable and will not normally affect your entitlement to other welfare benefits. Indeed, you may also be eligible for extra Pension Credit, Housing Benefit or Council Tax Reduction if you receive Attendance Allowance.
How Do You Apply?
Attendance Allowance is administered by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) rather than local councils. In Northern Ireland the Department for Communities (DfC) has responsibility for it.
The bad news is that there is a long (31 pages) and complicated application form. You can either download this from the government website or you can phone them on 0800 731 0122 and ask for a form to be sent to you. In Northern Ireland you can download the form from this site or phone the Disability and Carers Service on 0800 587 0912. You can apply yourself or someone else can apply on your behalf (with your permission, of course)..
Whether to download the application form or request it by phone needs careful consideration, as both methods have their pros and cons.
If you download the form it will be as an editable PDF. That is the option I used for my friend’s application. It has the advantage that you can complete it on screen rather than by hand. If is therefore easy to edit and amend your answers. Then when you are ready you can print it, sign it where required, and submit it. As a matter of interest, I used the free Foxit Reader program to complete and edit the form on my PC.
On the other hand, if you request a printed application form, as long as you return it within six weeks (a deadline date will be marked on the form) the benefit – if awarded – will be backdated to when the form was sent out. If you download the form from the website, it will only be backdated to the date they receive it from you. So you could lose out on several weeks’ money you might otherwise have had.
One compromise would be to request the form by phone and download it from the website as well. You can then use the downloaded version to create and edit your answers on screen. Once you have a finished version you are happy with, you can copy this manually on to the paper form and submit it within the six-week deadline.
Top Tips for Filling in the Form
Based on my experiences helping my friend – and some additional research online – here are my top ten tips for completing the Attendance Allowance application form.
1. Don’t rush at it like the proverbial bull in a china shop. If you do, you will almost certainly make mistakes and forget things. If you requested the form by phone you have six weeks to complete and return it without any financial penalty, so take advantage of this.
2. Read the notes that come with the form before you start to complete it. This will help you understand what the assessors are looking for to determine whether you are eligible for the benefit (and at what rate).
3. Keep a diary for a few days at least (ideally a week). Record in this all the occasions on which you need help and support. For example, if you need help getting dressed or washing, note down when this happens and how many times a day.
4. Be honest about your care needs when completing the form. Bear in mind, though, that Attendance Allowance is awarded to people who need help with their personal care. Washing, showering, eating, getting dressed and going to the toilet would all be things to mention if you need help with them. On the other hand, things like washing clothes, cooking, washing-up, dusting and hoovering may not be viewed in the same light. While these tasks clearly have to be performed by someone, they probably wouldn’t be regarded as personal care needs. Neither does the allowance cover mobility needs.
5. In the relevant section (Question 25) you should list any aids and adaptations you need/use. These might include bath or stair rails, a hoist, a shower seat, a commode, a walking stick, a wheelchair or walking frame, and so on. If you have eyesight problems, they could also include a magnifying glass or an extra-bright daylight bulb. You should also write about these things in the relevant ‘care needs’ questions. For example, if you use a grab rail to get in and out of the shower, you should also mention this in Question 29, ‘Do you usually have difficulty, or do you need help with washing, bathing, showering or looking after your appearance?’ Don’t worry if you end up mentioning the same thing twice (or more) over.
6. Bear in mind that you don’t have to require continuous support to receive the benefit. The term used on the form is frequent, although this isn’t defined precisely. One question (in Q38) asks how long you can safely be left unsupervised. My friend and I decided that the honest answer to this was two to three hours, although the latter would only apply with careful advance preparation. We answered 2-3 hours maximum and this appeared to be acceptable.
7. In addition, it doesn’t matter who is providing your care currently. My friend was concerned that because her husband was her primary carer, she would not be eligible for Attendance Allowance, as this would be expected from a spouse anyway. That is emphatically not the case. No matter who is caring for you – or even if nobody currently is – that will not affect your eligibility for the benefit.
8. The form gives you the opportunity (in Q49) to include a statement about your care needs from someone who knows you well. It is obviously good to include this if you can. As a close family friend I filled in this part of the form myself, but other options might include a doctor, a nurse, a care assistant, a family member, a priest or chaplain, or even a neighbour. Obviously it is important that whoever does this understands what the form is for and the sort of care needs the assessors are looking for.
9. You can also include a letter (or letters) from a medical professional backing up your need for care and support. In the case of my friend, we included a copy of a letter from her main (respiratory) consultant regarding her latest appointment. Fortuitously this also listed all her other health conditions and included a brief medical history. If you don’t have something like this available, ask your GP or consultant if they will provide something for you.
10. Remember that care needs can be psychological as well as physical. If you need support to combat loneliness and depression (or worse), you can and should mention this on the form.
Submitting the Form
Once you have completed the form, you will need to send it by post (email is not acceptable). As I completed my friend’s form online, I printed it out and put it in a clear plastic wallet, then sent this is a large padded envelope.
The address to send it in England, Wales or Scotland is Freepost DWP Attendance Allowance. The address for Northern Ireland will be on the form.
Don’t expect a quick response to your application. It is likely to be six to eight weeks before you hear anything, though you can if you wish phone to check that they have received it.
As mentioned, if your application is successful your benefit will be backdated to the date the form was received or (if you originally requested it by phone and are within the six-week deadline) the date the printed form was sent out to you.
Thankfully my friend’s application was approved without any further investigation and she is now receiving the allowance. In some cases applicants are required to attend for a personal assessment. Information about this will be sent by letter.
If you are unsuccessful in your application, you can submit an appeal. Information about how to do this will be included with the letter informing you that your application has been unsuccessful. You will need to appeal in writing to the address given in the letter. Normally you have to submit your appeal within a month of being turned down.
Other Resources
This has inevitably been a concise article, based on my experience of applying for Attendance Allowance on my friend’s behalf. If you need more information and guidance, there is plenty more online. Here are some useful websites to check out…
Government Attendance Allowance website
Which? Guide to Attendance Allowance
Age UK Guide to completing the Attendance Allowance form (PDF)
Carers UK Attendance Allowance Guide and Factsheet
In Conclusion
If you – or an elderly relative, friend or neighbour – may be eligible for Attendance Allowance, I hope this post has encouraged you to apply. The application form can appear daunting at first, but if you take your time and approach it in a calm and systematic way, it is perfectly do-able. The money is set aside for people in your situation, and it really can help make your life a little more comfortable.
I do, though, recommend enlisting some help with it if possible. Even if you are confident about completing the form, someone who knows you well may be able to suggest ways you need care and support that you might not have thought to mention yourself. And two heads are always better than one, of course! If you don’t have a suitable friend or relative, you can contact your local Citizens Advice Bureau and ask if they have someone who can assist you in completing the form.
As always, if you have any comments or questions (though bear in mind I make no claim to being an expert about Attendance Allowance!), please do leave them below as usual.
February 6, 2020 @ 11:12 am
I remember my parents having to apply for attendance allowance to help with the costs of looking after my nana when she came to live with us. I don’t know how they’d have coped without it really. Hopefully it’ll still be something the government give people access to as time goes on!
May 2, 2020 @ 8:39 pm
Thanks for the comment. Yes, Attendance Allowance can be a lifeline for older people with disabilities. It has made a big difference to my friend and her husband, and means that at least money problems aren’t adding to the already considerable stresses of the current lockdown.
February 7, 2020 @ 4:18 pm
Great overview of this as I didn’t know all that much about it. Very good point in highlighting it’s for personal care needs; the likes of washing up or cleaning the house aren’t going to be viewed the same and nor are mobility requirements. Brilliant post because it’s sad to think there will be many entitled to this without even knowing it exists.
Caz x
February 7, 2020 @ 4:45 pm
Thanks, Caz. Yes, absolutely. The article I linked to near the top reckons that around 3.4 million pensioners who would be eligible for Attendance Allowance aren’t receiving it, which is a shockingly high number. i am sure that lack of awareness and the dauntingly long application form must play a part in this.