Information for over 60’s

Are you over 60?
If you are on low income and have capital/saving under £16,000 or you have savings over £16,000 but receive Guarantee Credits from the Pension Service you can apply for help with your rent (Housing Benefit) or help to reduce your Council Tax Bill (Council Tax Benefit).

You can use our on-line Benefit Calculator to give you a rough guide to see if you are entitled.

You can down load a Benefit Claim form here
Help with rent and Council Tax for pensioners

New service for pensioners – contact our Joint Team (pdf) for a full benefit entitlement check.

Make sure you are getting what you are entitled to.
Enfield Council and the Pension Service operate a Joint Visiting Team or experienced Officer who will come to your home and give you a free full Welfare Benefit check and assist you to make any relevant claims to maximise your income.

What can the Joint Team do?
• Provide information on all benefit entitlements
• Help with all the paperwork
• Verify and collect the supporting evidence in the comfort of your own home

The Joint Team will be able to offer information on the following benefits and entitlements;
• Pension Credit
• Housing Benefit
• Council Tax Benefit
• Attendance Allowance
• Other Welfare Benefits
• Disabled Badges
• Taxi Card Schemes
• Referrals to Social Services

How to contact the Joint Team

Via e-mail on Joint.Team@Enfield.gov.uk
By telephone on 020 8899 3232

Other useful information

Pension Credits -What is the Pension Credit?
The Pension Credit is made up of two components: the Guaranteed Credit and the Savings Credit.

The Guaranteed Credit can top up any money that you already have coming in each week, to a level the Government says that you need to live on.

The Savings Credit gives extra money to people aged 65 or over who have saved for their retirement – for example: if you have an occupational or private pension or savings.

For further information on claiming the Pension Credit click on this link www.pensions.gov.uk or contact 0800 991234.
If I claim the Pension Credit how much Housing or Council Tax Benefit will I be entitled to?

National leaflet - Help with Rent and Council Tax for Pensioners

Guaranteed Credit or Guaranteed Credit with the Savings Credit

Those entitled to the Guaranteed Credit normally qualify for full Housing and/or Council Tax Benefit - less any deductions for adults living with you (other than your partner or a carer), and deductions for any charges in your rent for things like fuel, water, meals and support. There are however exceptions to this rule when maximum Housing and/or Council Tax Benefit will not be paid such as:

• If the rent charged is too high
• If you only receive the Savings Credit or are not entitled to the Pension Credit, the Council will work out your Housing or Council Tax Benefit by taking into account the income and capital that you have (including the Savings Credit).

I am entitled to the Savings Credit only

If you only receive the Savings Credit you will not normally be able to claim either Housing or Council Tax Benefit if the total value of your savings and investments is more than £16,000. If you receive the Guarantee Credit, this capital limit will not apply.

Reporting Changes in Circumstance

Aside from changes in your income, which you should report to the Pension Service, it is important that you tell us as soon as possible about any changes in your circumstances that might affect your entitlement to Housing and Council Tax Benefit. These are:
If you are renting a property, you must tell us about changes to your tenancy such as:
• If your rent increases or decreases
• The terms of your tenancy change
• Your tenancy ends etc

You must also tell us about the following changes:

• Where you or your partner are going to be absent from your home if its likely to be over 13 weeks
• You must tell us if the membership of your household changes
• You must tell us if your Child Tax Credit changes
• If another adult, other than your partner stops or starts living with you. We also need to know the other adults income
• You must tell us if your capital increase over £16,000

If you don’t receive the Pension Credit you will still need to tell us about all of the above changes as well as:

• Your income, or that of your partner’s goes up or down
• You or your partner stop or start receiving money
• You or your partner start or stops working
• There are changes to you or your partner’s savings and investments

Once you have told us about a change in your circumstances the Council will look at your Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit claim to check:

• Whether a re-assessment is required
• From what date your Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit claim needs to be re-assessed
If you are not sure about whether to report a change in circumstances to the Revenues & Benefits Service, please contact us for advice immediately on 0208 379 3798 or email us revs@enfield.gov.uk

For those who cannot visit one of the helpdesks you can request a Home Visit (day time) on 020 839 4779.

We also have a Telephone Benefits Claims Service for those visual difficulties - 0208 379 4992

For those with Hearing Difficulties, Enfield provides a textphone service –
020 8379 4998

Other Useful Contacts

Pension Credits
www.pensions.gov.uk
0800 991234

Carers Allowance
www.dwp.gov.uk/lifeevent/benefits/carers_allowance.asp
01772 899655

AttendanceAllowance www.dwp.gov.uk/lifeevent/benefits/attendance_allowance.asp
08457 123456

Disability Living Allowance
www.dwp.gov.uk/lifeevent/benefits/disability_liv_allowance.asp
08457 123456

Age Concern
www.ageconcern.org.uk
020 8765 7200

This document was last updated on 2008-05-14 17:32:08 published by the Revenues and Benefits team. Document Reference:LBE_130550