FACTSHEET No. 25 Bereavement Benefits This factsheet is a basic introduction to bereavement benefits. 1. What are bereavement benefits? There are three benefits available if your partner has died. These are bereavement allowance, bereavement payment and widowed parents allowance. 2. Bereavement allowance This is a weekly taxable benefit paid to you for 52 weeks, from the date of your husband, civil partner or wife's death. You must be over age 45 but under pension age when your husband, civil partner or wife dies. The amount you get depends on your age and your spouse or civil partner's contribution record (but it can also be paid if he or she died as a result of an industrial accident or prescribed industrial disease). You cannot get bereavement allowance if you are in receipt of widowed parent's allowance but you can get it after widowed parent's allowance ceases to be paid. You also cannot get bereavement allowance once you have reached the retirement pension age. 3. Bereavement payment This is a tax free lump sum paid to you when your husband, civil partner or wife has died. Payment depends on your spouse or civil partner's contribution record (but it can also be paid if he or she died as a result of an industrial accident or prescribed industrial disease). It cannot be paid to you once you reach retirement pension age unless your husband/wife was not entitled to retirement pension based on her/his own contributions when s/he died. 4. Widowed parents allowance Widowed parent's allowance is paid if you are a widow/widower having care of a child or children or are a widow expecting a child. It is a weekly contributory benefit based on your spouse or civil partner's contribution record (but it can also be paid if he or she died as a result of an industrial accident or prescribed industrial disease). Payment stops when you reach pension age. 5. Social Fund funeral payments These are paid if you or your partner take responsibility for the costs of a funeral. To find out more see Factsheet F41 - the social fund. 6. How much are they worth?
7. How do I claim? You claim all of these benefits on form BB1, available from your local Department for Work and Pensions office (DWP) or Jobcentre Plus office. You can also claim bereavement benefits by ringing the national claim number (0800 055 6688; textphone 0800 023 4888) or download a form from www.direct.gov.uk. In Northern Ireland you can get a form BB1 from the Pensions Service, Windsor House any Social Security or Jobs & Benefits office or the Benefits Shop. You can find out more information by going to the NI Direct website at www.nidirect.gov.uk. 8. Where can I get more help or advice? You can get help at a local advice centre, such as a citizen's advice bureau. You can get more information about this from our factsheet F16, Finding a local advice centre. You can obtain copies of our factsheets and publications by contacting CARA on +44 (0) 844 478 0015 -Mob: +44(0) 795 695 2645 -Fax: +44(0) 872 115 8436 -Email: info@cara-online.org . All factsheets are available at http://www.cara-online.org/. All publications are available at http://www.cara-online.org/ Updated 8 April 2011 |