Carers are urged to get access to vital financial help – up to £2,262 a year – during the ongoing cost-of-living crisis through their platform. In the UK, one in five people are carers, yet only 250,000 carers are making use of the Discounts for Carers platform, according to CarersUK.
Nearly three million UK carers are missing out on saving £2,262 a year on food shopping, petrol and holidays.
With bills on the rise, many vulnerable people may be looking for ways to make their cash stretch further.
Some 83 percent of carers are worried/extremely worried about how they’ll manage their monthly expenses if costs continue to increase, and almost half (45 percent) are relying on their savings.
Despite carers being entitled to major savings, discount providers are only seeing 17,000 registrations a month.
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Discounts for Carers, in partnership with Sodexo Engage, has calculated that 2.8 million UK carers are missing out as they aren’t aware.
Discounts for Carers members get exclusive access to the ODE Cashback Card, provided by Sodexo Engage, with the top users earning on average £269.68 cashback (highest £730.40 – lowest £188.89), cashback that could make an incredible difference to UK carers.
Despite Government efforts to provide financial help, cashback and discount schemes for carers can be easily adopted and can have a transformative effect on their finances.
What is Carer’s Allowance?
Around half a million people are not claiming Carer’s Allowance although it could help them make ends meet during the worst cost of living crisis for 40 years.
Britons could be eligible for this Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) benefit if they care for someone for at least 35 hours a week.
One in eight people provide care for someone else in the UK which works out at 10.6 million people in the UK who are supporting vulnerable elderly friends and relatives who need additional support.
However, 500,000 of them aren’t aware they could claim extra financial support from the DWP to help with their own living costs.
To qualify for Carer’s Allowance people will need to be looking after someone for 35 hours a week or more and not earn more than £132 a week.
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Although it’s currently worth £69.70 a week, the exact amount someone receives will depend on other benefits they get.
Carer’s Allowance is typically awarded to carers who are looking after someone who receives:
- Personal Independence Payment – daily living component
- Disability Living Allowance
- Attendance Allowance
- Constant Attendance Allowance
- Armed Forces Independence Payment
Carers don’t have to be related to the person or live with them to qualify but if they share caring responsibilities with someone else, only one person can claim.
If earnings are sometimes more than the cut-off of £132 a week it might still be worth putting in an application as expenses are also taken into account.
Expenses can include 50 percent of pension contributions, equipment and travel.
How much is Carer’s Allowance going up in April?
All benefits are increasing in April in line with September 2022’s inflation figure of 10.1 percent.
Carer’s Allowance will automatically rise from £69.70 per week to £75.74 from April 2023.
This benefit is not included in the list of qualifying benefits for the one-off cost of living payments.
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