Thousands of benefit claimants in Ireland will have to prepare for a significant change to their payment schedule due to the upcoming May Bank Holiday. In addition, updates have been provided on a vital social security payment.
Bank Holiday Payment Shift
The Department of Social Protection has announced that, in view of the May Bank Holiday, beneficiaries of social assistance who were due to receive their payments on Monday 6 May will now be paid on Friday 3 May.
Monday 6 May is a Bank Holiday and as a result, any social welfare payments due to be in your account on Monday 6 May will now be paid on Friday 3 May instead.
Payments will be resumed on Tuesday 7 May as usual. Furthermore, all Intreo centres and branches will be closed on Bank Holiday Monday.
Living Alone Increase Benefit Discontinuity
Minister Heather Humphreys has announced that the 'Living Alone Increase' scheme is to be discontinued for elderly parents of disabled children who attend day services and are unable to work because of their disability.
The Living Alone Increase is a weekly allowance of £22 (or £88 per month) payable to people aged 66 or over who live alone and are already in receipt of various social benefits.
The purpose of this benefit is to help people to manage their day-to-day living costs. Qualifying payments for the Living Alone Increase include Contributory and Non-Contributory State Pension, Widow's or Widower's State Pension and Deserted Wife's Allowance.
People aged under 66 are also eligible, provided they live alone and are in receipt of certain disability benefits, including Invalidity Allowance, Invalidity Pension and Blind Pension.
According to Ministry figures, each week a total of 172,584 people receive this allowance, at a total monthly cost of more than €15.1 million.
However, there have been calls to extend this payment to older people who have disabled children living with them, or who attend disabled day services but are unable to work because of the extra care they require.
In response to a parliamentary question from Colm Burke, MP for Cork North-Central, Minister Humphreys said that her department already provided a ‘range of support’ to ‘older people, carers and people living with a disability ’.
She also urged all OAP recipients to check that they are receiving all the payments for which they qualify - which could be up to 10 payments - with them, who attend disabled day services but are unable to work because of the extra care they require.
The Minister continued: ‘Provided the relevant criteria are met, a person may be entitled to State Pension (Contributory), State Pension (Non-Contributory), Attendance Allowance, Attendance Allowance (including half-rate payments), Domiciliary Care Allowance, Carer's Allowance or Disability Allowance.
‘A person may also qualify for other benefits such as heating allowance, free transport and all household benefits.