Tuesday, February 18

Day: April 20, 2021

Half a million people not claiming who eligible for universal credit
Featured, United Kingdom

Half a million people not claiming who eligible for universal credit

Half a million people who were eligible for universal credit at the start of the pandemic did not claim it despite often experiencing sharp falls in income, new research shows. A report led by the University of Salford and funded by the Health Foundation finds hundreds of thousands of people were not aware they could claim the support, while others had chosen not to claim due to the perceived hassle of applying or the stigma around claiming benefits. Ministers are now being urged to introduce a strategy to ensure people can claim the right benefits more quickly, correct misperceptions about the benefits system and attempt to address “benefits stigma”. The number of people claiming universal credit in the UK has doubled since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, with more than 6 million...