MILLIONS of households on Universal Credit and other benefits are set to get a bumper payment rise next year.
Benefits payments generally rise every April in order to keep up with the cost of things like food and household bills.
1
The process is known as “uprating” and tends to see payments go up by the previous September’s inflation rate.
Fresh figures released today show that stubborn inflation stuck at 6.7% in September.
Inflation is a measure of how the price of goods and services has changed over the past year.
Easing food and drink price rises were offset by higher petrol and diesel prices for motorists.
READ MORE IN MONEY
It’s expected that the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) will confirm how much benefits will be uprated by in November.
For example in April this year benefits were hiked by 10.1%, in line with last September’s inflation rate.
This was then confirmed during the Autumn Statement.
It means that in April we could see benefits rise by 6.7%.
Most read in Money
Uprating ensures that payments can keep up with the cost of living like food, clothes and fuel.
How much will Universal Credit and other benefits rise in 2024?
If the uprating does go ahead at 6.7% it’ll mean an increase for those on Universal Credit (UC) as well as other benefits.
The current standard allowance for single UC claimants under the age of 25 is £292.11 a month, if it were to go up by 6.7% it would be £311.68 – an increase of £19.57.
The standard allowance for single claimants over the age of 25 is £368.74 a month.
If benefits are hiked by 6.7%, payments would increase by £24.71 a month to £393.45.
If you live with your partner and you’re both under 25, your monthly payment will increase from £458.51 to £489.23 – a rise of £30.72.
If you live with your partner and either of you are 25 or over, you could see a rise of £38.78 from £578.82 to £617.60 a month.
The following benefits are also legally required to rise with the previous September’s rate of inflation each April:
But it’s important to remember the government could decide to increase benefit rates by a different amount.
A DWP spokesperson told The Sun: “We increased benefits by over 10% this year in order to protect the most vulnerable from the impact of high inflation.
“As is the usual process, the Secretary of State will conduct his statutory annual review of benefits and State Pensions using the most recent data available.”
The exact amount more you get will also depend on exactly how much your benefit payments are each month, as there are also extra amounts if you have children or caring responsibilities.
State pension is also set to rise in April, however under the triple lock system these payments are expected to go up by 8.5% instead.
That’s because the triple lock sees state pension rise in line with whatever is highest out of: wages for May to July, 2.5% or September’s inflation figures.
Growth in employees’ average total pay was 8.5% in the three months to July.
That means that wages are higher this year than September’s inflation rate.
How to get help now
If you’re struggling with rising costs and bills now there is help available to you.
For example, you could be entitled to cost of living payments of up to £1,350.
This year and into 2024 the government is handing out cash to millions of people.
Individually the payments are worth £900, £300 and £150.
Some people may be eligible for all three which means a total of £1,350.
The £900 Cost of Living payment has been split into three instalments worth £301, £300 and £299.
The second instalment of £300 is being dished out from October 31.
A separate £300 pensioner CoL payment will follow from November, but an exact date is yet to be announced.
Plus the £150 Warm Home Discount is being applied from now until March 31 next year.
Read More on The Sun
And you can also get help from your local council as part of the Household Support Fund.
For example, eligible households can get up to £350 free if they live in Tandridge, in east Surrey.
Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing [email protected].
You can also join our new Sun Money Facebook group to share stories and tips and engage with the consumer team and other group members.
This post first appeared on thesun.co.uk
