First 6 Days - Illness Benefit Query

ShaShaBear

My husband is due his last Illness Benefit payment soon and I was wondering if those first 6 days they don't pay you for are given to you in your final payment or are they days they simply don't pay you for? I remember something similar with Jobseekers and was wondering if this was the same?

Dempo1

ShaShaBear wrote: »

My husband is due his last Illness Benefit payment soon and I was wondering if those first 6 days they don't pay you for are given to you in your final payment or are they days they simply don't pay you for? I remember something similar with Jobseekers and was wondering if this was the same?

Can you clarify is this standard illness benefit or enhanced illness benefit (covid)

for standard illness benefit (off work) depending on when a person first applied there was either 6 waiting days but this reduced to 3 waiting days in the past year or so. Waiting days unfortunately are not paid.

Enhanced illness benefit (covid) has no waiting days, so in this case if a person wasn't paid for first 6 days, that would be classed as arrears and owed, if not paid, I'd recommend contacting SW immediately and they will sort this out.

ShaShaBear

Dempo1 wrote: »

Can you clarify is this standard illness benefit or enhanced illness benefit (covid)

for standard illness benefit (off work) depending on when a person first applied there was either 6 waiting days but this reduced to 3 waiting days in the past year or so. Waiting days unfortunately are not paid.

Enhanced illness benefit (covid) has no waiting days, so in this case if a person wasn't paid for first 6 days, that would be classed as arrears and owed, if not paid, I'd recommend contacting SW immediately and they will sort this out.

Ah, that answers my question so - it is not a covid-related payment. We just weren't sure if they were to be paid or not (they've short-changed us before and we wanted to make sure we were getting what we were supposed to)

Dempo1

ShaShaBear wrote: »

Ah, that answers my question so - it is not a covid-related payment. We just weren't sure if they were to be paid or not (they've short-changed us before and we wanted to make sure we were getting what we were supposed to)

I got a sense it may not have been the covid one, if I may ask, is your husband returning to work or wiil he have to consider another benefit payment, I just ask because I'm just about to commence an application for disability allowance, illness benefit time frame would not be practical in my case as I'm expected to have difficulties for more than 2 years and probably longer.

for standard illness benefit (off work) depending on when a person first applied there was either 6 waiting days but this reduced to 3 waiting days in the past year or so. Waiting days unfortunately are not paid.


Yep, its 3 days now as opposed to 6 at beginning of year.... Heather humpreys changed it in March. Its kinda perverse that it took a pandemic for the government to look at some of these things.

ShaShaBear

Dempo1 wrote: »

I got a sense it may not have been the covid one, if I may ask, is your husband returning to work or wiil he have to consider another benefit payment, I just ask because I'm just about to commence an application for disability allowance, illness benefit time frame would not be practical in my case as I'm expected to have difficulties for more than 2 years and probably longer.

He was supposed to be returning to work, but it seems covid may have impacted that so we will have to see, unfortunately

Dempo1

ShaShaBear wrote: »

He was supposed to be returning to work, but it seems covid may have impacted that so we will have to see, unfortunately

Sorry to hear this, there's still so many affected job wise, re covid, its going to be a very long road to economic recovery. I'm not sure if it may apply to your husband but if its a case his employer is saying no return yet, he may need to look at applying for JSA/JSB payment, I don't think he would qualify for the PUP payment due to being out sick prior to the pandemic. God luck regardless.