Universal Credit process is ‘absolutely horrible’

Pat Wilson, 61, from Keady suffers from fibromyalgia and had been a full time carer for her severely disabled son, Sean, for 30 years.

After he died in February 2018, she was transferred from Income support and Carers Allowance onto the new Universal Credit (UC), which is rolling out as part of the UK-wide Welfare Reform programme.

While previous benefits are paid in advance, UC is paid in arrears, often leaving claimants with a gap of several weeks without money. “It was absolutely horrible,” Pat said.

She lived in a specially adapted house to cope with Sean’s condition, with four bedrooms to accommodate her two other sons,

“But after they moved out they told me I had to pay for the extra bedrooms. I had no intention of staying in it, but I was spoken to as though I was nothing.”

Eventually she was able to move into a smaller house.

She felt she had been questioned about ‘missing’ rent which later turned out to have been contained within two previous payments.

“I had Citizens Advice working on it but they could not get through to them. They eventually they realised it was a mistake but it got me up to £1000 in arrears.”

UC paid the arrears eventually but when she asked for an explanation she was sent 200 pages about her case.

“At one point the advisors asked me if I had any friends or family I could borrow money from.”

She describes her late son as “beautiful” but says advisors appeared sceptical that he had required full-time care for 30 years.

The Department for Communities said it does not comment on individual cases.