CA’s NI credits for contributory ESA

Hello guys
I’m wondering if you can help with this one as I’m at a dead end!
My client is claiming CA and is also incapable of work (under pension age). At the moment she is not entitled to ESA of either type because she does not satisfy the contributions conditions or the means-testing.
I’ve read on CPAG that it is now possible to satisfy the first condition of entitlement to ESA by being credited with CA’s contributions in the tax year preceding the relevant benefit year. My question is:
- Does she also need to satisfy the second condition to become entitled to contributory ESA or is it enough to have been paid CA in the tax year before the current benefit year?
She started claiming CA in November 2009 and she wants to know when and if will she ever be able to get ESA (assuming she can’t work again). She is aware that she can’t get both ESA and CA at the same time but obviously she’d be better off getting ESA.
I have tried to pose this question to the ESA manager at Peterborough BDC and also to the CA’s Allowance unit but needless to say that they did not know!

Many many thanks for any answers!

Bea

Looking at the regulations and Act together I think the answer is this:

1. A contribution year’s worth of carer’s allowance, in the last contribution year before the tax year of claim, will satisfy the first contribution condition, the one that normally require actual earnings or linking to a previous period of claim. Your client only started claiming CA in November, so her contribution year began in April 2010 and will end in April 2011. Thus unless they change the law in the meantime the earliest date from which current receipt of CA can help her qualify for ESA is the first Monday in January 2012.

2. Of course the second contribution condition will still apply, which would require two contribution years’ worth of contribution credits (eg from claiming JSA or claiming credits on the basis of incapacity/unemployment or from CA - I don’t think there ought to be a problem with the same CA claim double-counting - in fact, I think it is impossible for it not to. The two years must be the two contribution years immediately before the year of claim. So unless the client has a record of credits for TWO complete tax years before claim, the earliest calim date would I think be January 2013.

Does anyone else agree?