Find out how much your Universal Credit payment is being cut – and you might get an alert TODAY

BRITS on Universal Credit have started to receive alerts to let them know the end of the £20 a week uplift is fast approaching.

The £80 a month increase, which was introduced to help hard-up families during the Covid pandemic, will end on October 1.

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The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has started telling claimants how much of their current payment is due to the temporary uplift.

It will send out further notifications throughout August and September until the boost is scrapped at the end of next month.

But the DWP is not sending out letters to inform people on Universal Credit that the uplift is coming to an end.

Will Quince MP, the minister for welfare delivery, confirmed in a letter to Work and Pensions Committee chair Stephen Timms that claimants will not be alerted by post.

Instead the DWP will update claimants’ statements and journal messages “making it clear that [the uplift] will no longer be included in their standard allowance”.

When a claimant’s online journal or statement is updated, it sends a text or email letting them know.

To check your Universal Credit journal and statement, you should log on to your online account.

It is not clear how many alerts will be sent out in the run up to the deadline or if all claimants will be notified at the same time.

The boost increased the standard allowance for Universal Credit – this is the amount that everyone is entitled to if their claim is approved.

Monthly Universal Credit payments jumped from £317.82 to £409.89, for a single claimant aged 25 or older.

The uplift applied to both new and existing Universal Credit claimants.

Universal Credit claims soared during the pandemic, meaning millions of Brits have only ever received payments with the boost in place.

The government has faced pressure from charities and MPs to continue to pay the £20 uplift.

It has been described as a “lifeline” for struggling families, worth an extra £1,040 a year.

Charity Turn2Us has previously warned that the removal of uplift could see 500,000 people “pulled into poverty overnight”.

However, extending the uplift would cost the government around £6billion every year.

How much will I lose?

Universal Credit claimants will lose £20 a week from their benefit payments and over the year that adds up to a loss of £1,040.

The full details of how much Universal Credit you will get will be added to your online statement.

You should double check your Universal Credit account to see how the changes will apply to your finances.

Here’s how much money you’ll lose from your monthly payments, with rates for the 2021-22 tax year, before and after the uplift:

• For those single and aged under 25, the standard allowance with the uplift is £344 – after the uplift is cut that will fall to £257.33
• For those single and aged 25 or over, the standard allowance with the uplift is £411.51 – after the uplift is cut that will fall to £324.84
• For joint claimants both under 25, the standard allowance with the uplift is £490.60 (for both) – after the uplift is cut that will fall to £403.93
• For joint claimants where one or both are 25 or over, the standard allowance with the uplift is £596.58 (for both) – after the uplift is cut that will fall to £509.91

Millions of Brits rely on the benefits system to cover essential costs, but simple mistakes could result in their payments being stopped.

Thousands of self-employed workers on Universal Credit could see their payments cut this month as the minimum income floor is reintroduced.

Here’s how to get free travel and childcare when hunting for jobs on Universal Credit.

This post first appeared on thesun.co.uk