Social Security Experience Panels: Carer's Allowance Supplement - experiences
This report outlines the research on the surveys conducted with experience panel members who have experience of Carer’s Allowance, to get some feedback on their experience of Carer’s Allowance Supplement.
What questions did you have about the letter?
Over eight in ten respondents (81 per cent) said they did not do anything when they received the letter. Among those who did do something, some looked for more information about the payment online (8 per cent), and some asked family and/or friends about the payment (7 per cent).
Respondents who answered ‘other’ said how they had showed their letter to family and friends and shared information about the supplement on social media to carer and disability groups.
Table 10: What did you do when you received the letter.(n= 113)
| What did you do after receiving the letter | % |
|---|---|
| I didn’t do anything | 81 |
| I phoned Social Security Scotland | 3 |
| I wrote to Social Security Scotland | 0 |
| I looked for more information about the payment online | 8 |
| I asked a family or friend about the payment | 7 |
| I phoned DWP | 0 |
| Other | 8 |
Table 11: Did you have any questions about CAS that were not answered by the letter?(n= 112)
| Payment | % |
|---|---|
| Yes | 10 |
| No | 82 |
| I can’t remember | 8 |
| Total | 100 |
Over eight out of ten (82 per cent) respondents said that they did not have any questions about the letters, while one in ten (10 per cent) said they did and just under one in ten respondents (8 per cent) could not remember.
Over half (58 per cent) of the respondents said they knew where to go to get answers to any questions. Four out of ten respondents (41 per cent) said they did not know or could not remember.
Table 12: Did you know where you could go to get answers to any questions that you had? (n=108)
| Payment | % |
|---|---|
| Yes | 58 |
| No | 20 |
| I can’t remember | 21 |
| Total | 99 |
One in ten participants (10 per cent) had questions about the Carer’s Allowance Supplement that were left unanswered by the letter. The most common question asked by respondents was on the payment dates for Carer’s Allowance Supplement and the reason behind the supplement being paid twice a year. Other questions included questions about impact on other benefits, whether they needed to declare to the tax office, and if the supplement would be taken back by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).
“Were DWP going to try and get it back”
“When it was going to be paid”
“Whether the Ukgov’s DWP would remove the supplement from my income support”
From the respondents who didn’t do anything after receiving the letter, as mentioned in table 10, there were a couple of respondents who had questions about the letter.
“I wasn’t sure if I had to contact the tax office to declare it…or whether they would be informed automatically”
“Why it was decided to pay it twice a year, and how the amount was calculated”
Contact
Email: socialsecurity@gov.scot
There is a problem
Thanks for your feedback