3. Help if you are sick, injured at work or disabled


There are a number of benefits that you may be able to claim if you are sick, injured at work or disabled. What you get depends on whether you are in work when the sickness or injury occurs, your National Insurance Contributions (NICs), your age and the length of time that you are sick. The range of benefits includes:


• Universal Credit (see Chapter 1);


• Statutory Sick Pay — if you are off work for up to 28 weeks; 


• Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit — if you are sick or injured as a result of a workplace accident or disease or have become deaf through work;


• Personal Independence Payment (PIP) began to replace Disability Living Allowance in April 2013 — for disabled people aged under the State Pension Age, whether in or out of work (see page 22); 


• Attendance Allowance — for disabled people aged over the State Pension Age (see page 57); and


• Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) — ESA replaced Incapacity Benefit and Income Support paid because of an illness or disability for new claimants in October 2008. (If you are already claiming Incapacity Benefit, you will be reassessed to decide if you are either capable for work or eligible for ESA, although people close to the State Pension Age (see page 74) will not be reassessed. If you are going to be reassessed, Jobcentre Plus will send you a questionnaire asking how your illness or disability affects your ability to do everyday tasks and ask you to complete it by the deadline. Jobcentre plus will then tell you if you need to attend a reassessment meeting which you must go to. If the reassessment shows that you are capable of working, your Incapacity Benefit will stop, but you may be able to claim Jobseeker’s Allowance instead (see page 35). If the reassessment shows you cannot work, you will transfer automatically onto ESA. See box on page 47 for current Incapacity Benefit rates.)


People providing full-time care (at least 35 hours) to a disabled person may be able to claim Carer’s Allowance (see page 58).


If you have an illness or disability and are working, you may be entitled to Working Tax Credit (see Chapter 2). If you are sick or disabled and on a low income, you may be able to get help with housing costs through Housing Benefit (see Chapter 6).