Universal Credit, state pension and Personal Independence Payment recipients need to update the benefits office as soon as possible or face having their payments altered
Benefit recipients must notify the Department for Work and Pensions if they have an overnight stay in a hospital or rehabilitation centre, as this could impact their payments. If you fail to inform the DWP about your hospital stay, either by yourself or through a friend or relative, your benefits could be reduced or halted.
This is referred to as reporting a change in circumstances and it affects 13 benefits available to those who are employed, disabled, or of pensionable age. However, the specific rules regarding when and whom you need to inform will depend on the benefit you’re claiming.
People who receive the following benefits need to report hospital stays:
- Universal Credit
- State Pension
- Pension Credit
- Attendance Allowance
- Disability Living Allowance
- Personal Independence Payment
- Income Support
- Jobseeker’s Allowance
- Employment and Support Allowance
- Housing Benefit
- Child Benefit
- Bereavement Allowance
- Carer’s Allowance
In most instances, you’ll need to provide a range of details about your hospital stay when reporting the change in circumstances. This includes the exact date you were admitted to the hospital, the name of the hospital and ward, any other hospital stays within the last 28 days, and whether you were transferred between hospitals.
If you’re due to miss a Jobcentre Plus appointment due to a hospital stay or medical appointment, it’s crucial to inform the DWP. If you’re receiving multiple benefits, you may need to report your hospital stay to more than one office. You can find more information on the Gov.uk website.
For instance, those on Universal Credit can report a hospital stay of 24 hours or longer through their online account. However, if they also receive Income Support, Jobseeker’s Allowance or Employment and Support Allowance, they’ll need to contact the Jobcentre Plus as well.
By reporting this change in circumstances, the department handling your payments can ensure they are adjusted correctly, so you don’t receive too much or too little while in hospital. Most of these benefits should continue during your hospital stay.
However, some benefits will stop after a certain period but can resume once you’ve been discharged. Your entitlement won’t be lost unless there’s another change that means you no longer meet the eligibility criteria – another change you’d need to report to the DWP.
Disability Living Allowance, Personal Independence Payments and Attendance Allowance will all halt payments if you have been in hospital for 28 days if you are over 18. If you were under 18 on the day you went into hospital, they may continue according to Turn2Us.
The charity explains: “You will need to tell the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) or Social Security Scotland that you have left hospital. If you come out of hospital but have to go back in within 28 days, your benefit will stop again as soon as you are staying in hospital again.”
Other benefits such as the state pension will only be impacted by your hospital stay if you get extra money for another person like a child or partner. This additional element will cease after you have been in hospital for 52 weeks.
