Liveaboard / benefits

[BruceDanforth]

I'm redundant from the end of the year so considering giving my flat up in the spring and moving onto the boat if nothing shows up. Has anyone successfully claimed housing/council tax benefit on the East Coast should I need to go down that route? It's a Hurley 22 so nothing grand. Everything is paid up until April but would I be better off forgetting about this and going and anchoring somewhere nice like Lindisfarne for free and just coming up the Tyne for bad weather / supplies / signing on should I fail to find work? Not enough money coming in to maintain a land presence so any advice gratefully received. I've crossed the Pacific (not in the Hurley!!) so don't mind long periods offshore on boats.

 

[sarabande]

probably best to establish yourself as a genuine claimant/signer on before you start living on board as DWP like people to have a landbased address. I understand that new claimants on liveaboards in marinas have great difficulty in convincing the DWP that they are not chimera.

Citizens Advice are also pretty hot in getting rent paid if people are not otherwise earning. They also advise on Council Tax for liveaboards.

Are you all up to date on your contributions ?

 

[BruceDanforth]

I've always been PAYE so the contributions had better be up to date.

 

[rivonia]

You must sign on as soon as you are officially redundant at a land based address, then your stamp will be paid and you will receive the basic benefits. Do go to CAB and ask for all the help you can get as usually the benefits people just dont seem to want to help. When they ask for a telephone number give them your mobile and not a land line, explain you dont use a land line anymore..
Good luck and hopefully a Merry Christmas.

Peter

 

[ukmctc]

Yes you can claim benefits living onboard.
It must be your permenant address, boat name, pontoon number, marina address, town, post code.
You can claim housing benefit too, you pay rent and they will pay your fee's.
The main problem is, the marina must agree with you living aboard full time. This comes down to their insurance policy, so you must check with them first.
You don't however have to pay council tax as you pay VAT on your berth, and the marina pays all other taxes on the marina.
However some marina's won't charge vat if you permenantly liveaboard and you will have to pay council tax to the council.
Living aboard as I do and moving around the country, I have met people, signing on and claiming all benefits including disability.
If you are living aboard full time your licence (drivers) must have this address too and thats also no problem.
Go for it, it doesn't matter if you sign on then move onto your boat, or move onto the boat then sign on.

 

[V1701]

You should have no problems at all getting JSA, don't let them try to make you sign on every day as if you were NFA. Applying for housing benefit opens up a whole different can of worms and to be avoided if possible, you may or may not get it if you try but it will almost certainly be a bit of a battle. You might consider it wortwhile if you are unlikely to be working again for a long time though...
All the best...