Will I have to pay the money back?
Yes.
Hardship payments are a loan.
- You need to pay them back
- Repayments are taken from your benefits
- Your benefits will be lower until the loan is repaid
How do I claim a hardship payment?
To claim a hardship payment, you need to:
- Be age 18 or older
- Show you tried to get money somewhere else (like from friends or family)
- Show you are only spending on essentials
Claiming on Universal Credit
Contact the Universal Credit helpline to apply if you are on Universal Credit.
Claiming if you are on JSA or ESA
Contact the Jobcentre Plus if you are on JSA or ESA.
How much can I get from a hardship payment?
Hardship payments give you just over half of what you lost in the sanction.
The total is 60% of your daily benefit times the number of days the sanction lasts.
For example:
- Let’s say you usually get benefits of £500 every 28 days
- But your benefits are sanctioned for seven days
- That means you normally get about £17.85 a day
- 60% of that is £10.71
- £10.71 x 7 days of sanction= £74.97
- Your hardship payment is around £75
A hardship payment is limited.
You have to apply again for more after it runs out.