capital

Tommy Miner wrote: what is reasonable use of capital and what is the definition of capital in relation to claiming esa benefits thanks

The ESA legislation does not define either of these terms, they apply across all Income Related benefits, but even then there is no definitive list for either term.

There are some items that it is reasonable to assume are included and some that are clearly not, but there is a considerable grey area in between.

As a general rule (I stress that this is not a complete list), capital includes all monies, all savings and cash, monetary instruments such Premium Bonds, shares and ISAs, property (your normal place of residence is not usually included. Things that may be included; any asset that you have the ability to dispose of whether you have full or part ownership of it. Personal possessions are not usually included.

The primary issue with the disposal of assets is whether the DWP believe that it has been done in order to retain entitlement to benefit payment, you can also be classed as having Notional Capital, this is where you are classed as having an asset even when you no longer have possession of it, the most obvious area that this applies to is money used in the early re-payment of a loan. Again this is should not be considered a definitive list.

Finally, you should be aware that these matters are subject to a Decision by a Decision Maker, so you cannot make assumptions of your status by comparing them to another claimant in a similar position, one DM may choose quite lawfully to include or exclude items that another would not.

Gordon