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I am posting this is the hope that someone has dealt with a similar situation.
My client is not entitled to payment of Incapacity benefit because he only has 49 credits/contributions for the year 03/04 and therefore doesn't satisfy the second contribution condition. His situation for that year was as follows: 6/4/03- 18/4/03 worked and earned £84 per week. (LEL in 03/04 was £77). He went off sick from 19/4/03 and was paid SSP from 22/4/03-6/6/03. Then claimed Incapacity benefit from 7/6/03- 8/3/04, and JSA from 9/3/04-5/4/04.
I think I have managed to nail where the shortfall arose. When someone is paid monthly as my client was, a monthly LEL (which was £334 in 03/04) is used rather than a weekly figure. Because of the 3 waiting days and being paid SSP only from 19.4.06 my client's gross pay for April 03 was £253.08. So until the week commencing Monday 28/4/03 when my client received a NI credit for a full week on SSP there were no other contributions. IF a weekly LEL was used then there would be at least 2 further contributions.
If my understanding of the situation is correct then this seems rather unfair as it differentiates between people paid weekly and monthly. Problem is that the information I have regarding using a monthly LEL comes from guidance from an unspecified source. I am therefore trying to locate the relevent legislation. I gather that it used to be contained in Part 1 of the Contributions and Benefits Act sections 1-20, but following the creation of the DWP the Contributions Agency was moved to the Inland Revenue. Sweet and Maxwell sheds no light on the new legislation. Can anyone point me in the right direction? I gather this will be HMRC rather than Social Security legislation and the DWP have said that an appeal on this issue is not within their remit and would need to go to HMRC which would seem correct.
Apologies for the length of this posting, and I know it is hardly a riveting subject to awaken the brain on a Friday afternoon but any pointers would as always be gratefully received!
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