Carer’s Allowance – 35 Hours
If you spend 35 or more hours each week caring for someone who gets PIP-Daily-Living, or Attendance Allowance, or middle or high rates of DLA-Care you can claim Carer’s Allowance of £76.75 per week.
Alongside this you will get a National Insurance Credit which will protect your eventual right to state retirement pension – You need a 35 year NI record to get full state pension.
Carer’s Credit – 20 Hours
If you spend 20 or more hours each week caring, you can claim Carer’s Credit to protect your national insurance record.
You qualify, even if your caring-hours are split between more than one disabled person.
You qualify, even if someone else is getting Carer’s Credit or Carer’s Allowance in respect of the same disabled person
You must make a claim for Carer’s Credit.
You should do this if you are not working and not getting an NI credit through some other benefit.
More about Carer’s Allowance:
Because Carer’s Allowance is a non-mean-tested benefit, it is an individual entitlement. If you have a partner, they are irrelevant to your claim.
Because Carer’s Allowance is non-means-tested your savings are irrelevant.
Mostly, your other income is irrelevant to Carer’s Allowance, but because it is an instead-of-a-wage benefit, you cannot have it if you have a wage of more than £139.00 per week.