Disability Living Allowance (UK)

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[quote="JakeG The whole point of DLA is that people who have disabilities that stop them working or create extra cost for them (e.g. nursing, mobility equipment etc.) get paid to cover those costs. If someone has AS but is able to work (even if it is more difficult for them then other people) then why the hell should they be entitled to money?

I mean take Bill Gates for example, it is often speculated that he has AS. If he were to get diagnosed, do you think he would be entitled to welfare?

The point of National Insurance is that it is a form of insurance; it is meant to indemnify people against costs, not give them a pat on the back in the form of money because they have a 'recognised condition'[/quote]

If Bill Gates were diagnosed, then he would and should be entitled to this form of welfare. It would be cheeky of him to accept it, but thats a matter of greed. DLA is intended as a payment to supplement your earnings, almost as a form of compensation for your disability, hence why it isnt means tested. However, for some, it is the ONLY income we can look forward to.

It's not actually. Yes I have social anxiety but the reason I can't get public transport is because I have topographical disorientation which is apparently related to my AS. So I'd end up getting off at the wrong place and get myself lost or something. I can't say how I'd be if I didn't have my mum, but I'm pretty sure I wouldn't even be in unversity if she wasn't there. I nearly ended up not going last August before I found out about AS.

The reason the questions have a heavy focus on physical disability is because DLA is about indemnfying against the costs of disability. If you have a physical disability and can't use the toilet unaided then you need money to pay for nursing help or an adapted bathroom/stairlift etc.

And yes, they do penalise against people who are capable of working, that is the whole point.

Plenty of people lack a helpful relative to do this sort of thing, and thus never leave the house at all. Theres no guarantee that Soph would be able to "manage". At best she could hope for some kind of care assistant, or (as in my case) a mutually supporting partner.

Exactly. I've often thought about what my life would be like without my family and how I would cope. And, to be honest, I don't think I would. I wouldn't have gone to college or university after I'd left school; I'd probably have ended up on drugs or something.

And mental issues arent disabling at all? People with mental disabilities cant use toilets unaided either, and in fact in some cases are even worse off. Someone with no legs WANTS to go to the toilet, and CAN go to the toilet, with assistance to compensate for having no legs. Someone who truly believes the toilet will kill them is pretty much doomed to a life of adult daipers. Also, coherent language skills do not denote a capability to work. YOu can write as well as Dickens or Shakespeare, but you're stuffed if you cant get into the office to actually do it.

If Bill Gates were diagnosed, then he would and should be entitled to this form of welfare. It would be cheeky of him to accept it, but thats a matter of greed. DLA is intended as a payment to supplement your earnings, almost as a form of compensation for your disability, hence why it isnt means tested. However, for some, it is the ONLY income we can look forward to.[/quote]

This is where your fundamental misunderstanding of DLA comes in. It isn't a form of compensation, it is meant as an indemnity against extra costs occured because of disability including indemnity against symptoms which make you unable to work.

Bill Gates has clearly shown that his disability (if he has one) doesn't incur him any extra expense and he has also shown that it hasn't procluded him from making as much money as he needs to live hence he would not be entitled to DLA.

Loads of people have a tough life for many different reasons, its just tough luck. I have always struggled (and still do struggle) to get work and I am constantly up against people who outperform me in interviews. It is just tough s**t, doesn't mean that I am entitled to benefits to console me for this. I have over 5 years of work experience and I have been going for summer jobs in competition with loads of other students who have no work experience, no life experience etc. and am consistently losing out because I am told I interview badly and that my communication skills are poor. It is just tough luck; I am able to work and I don't have any extra costs like nursing or anything like that so I am just not entitled to payments, it is as simple as that.

In summary, people with AS aren't automatically entitled to DLA. They are only entitled to DLA if

1) They are too low functioning to work or
2) If they have extra costs incurred e.g. if they need a support worker or a carer etc.

DLA is a supplement to income and is NOT means tested. DLA will continue to be paid, even if you gain employment, so long as you gain employment that does not contradict your disability. In the case of a child receiving DLA, its a supplement to the parents income and also not means tested. (My ex wife has two autistic children, and receives DLA for both, despite her new husband being executive management, and owning a house i regularly get lost in. Oddly enough, it STILL isnt enough to cover all those little extras that having special needs kids creates.)

But this is my point. You aren't entitled to DLA just because you have AS. You are entitled (or may be entitled) because of specific needs that incur extra costs e.g. your topographical disorientation.

Plenty of people with AS don't have that specific problem and hence wouldn't be entitled to the support. It may be that with assistance you would be able to overcome the problem enough to not need a lift e.g. if someone wrote you strict instructions on which bus to get and where to get off and exactly which walking route to follow etc.

The point is that DLA isn't a pat on the back to say 'oh, sorry about your disability, here is some cash to compensate you' but rather it is money to indemnify people against specific extra costs incurred by disability.

The point is that many people with AS are able to lead relatively normal lives and look after themselves even if it does mean that they have crappy jobs and rarely go out (e.g. me). So not everyone with AS should automatically be entitled to DLA just because it is a recognise condition, it should be awarded strictly on the basis of specific needs.

I mean people have different problems that ruin their lives. People go through trauma like rape or abuse which screws up their ability to interact socially. Why should Aspergians be paid out willy nilly just because the condition is 'recognised'?

I did but I have had it taken away computer error. I am currently appealing

I never claimed that I should receive DLA simply for having AS, or that everyone with AS should. I was explaining why some of us who are high functioning can still need parents/carers etc.

Income Support is the one that is means-tested.

DLA is available to anyone who has some sort of disability, and the rate is basically determined on how disabled they THINK you are (not how you ARE, but how they THINK you are).


Who can get Disability Living Allowance?

You may get Disability Living Allowance if:

* you have a physical or mental disability, or both
* your disability is severe enough for you to need help caring for yourself or you have walking difficulties, or both
* you are under 65 when you claim

If you are aged 65 or over, you may be able to get Attendance Allowance.

* Attendance Allowance

You can get Disability Living Allowance whether or not you work.

It isn’t usually affected by any savings or income you may have.


DLA

If you have a lookie on the link on that page (Am I entitled..), there are parts where you get EXTRA money, for care and mobility. So it's not given JUST FOR that.

Last edited by LadyMacbeth on 04 Jun 2007, 12:26 pm, edited 1 time in total.

DLA rates arent actually enough to cover the cost of hiring a nurse, or personal carer or assistant outside the NHS anyway, so its very academic. They just toss you some cash and say "go be a mong away from us in the corner. Heres a plastic hammer." Trying to actually get an NHS supplied carer is like searching for rocking horse s**t. I also wonder frequently.. who are the "decision making officers" and what qualifications do they have to decide exactly how much my particular issue is worth?

Exactly, it isn't compensation; it is an INDEMNITY against additional cost.

If someone has AS but incurs no extra cost because of their AS; they wouldn't be entitled to DLA.

I didn't say it was means-tested I said that it was awarded on the basis of extra costs incurred because of your disablity. With my Bill Gates example, I said he wouldn't be entitled because his disability doesn't incur him any extra cost; not because of his income.

I don't get it because I went to a grammar school. Therefore, if I'm intelligent enough to get into a grammar, then I clearly don't have any other problems in my life...