Bereavement Support Payment is a lesser-known welfare benefit available to those whose husband, wife, civil partner or long-term partner with whom they have dependent children died in the last 21 months.
Though not means-tested, those eligible receive either a standard or higher benefit rate dependent on whether they are responsible for children or not. The support payment is only issued for 18 months after the date of death and is intended to help relieve some of the financial burden at such a stressful and emotional time.
Bereavement Support has replaced Bereavement Allowance (previously Widow’s Pension), Bereavement Payment, and Widowed Parent’s Allowance. Though applications can be paid up to 21 months after the partner’s death, to get the full amount available a claim must be made within 3 months of the death.
As with all welfare benefits, there are some conditions, and these are set out below:
- The death must have occurred on or after 6th April 2017
- The deceased paid National Insurance contributions for a period of at least 25 weeks in one tax year since April 1975 or the deceased died as a result of an accident at work, or a disease caused by work
- The surviving partner was under State Pension age at the time of the partner’s death
- The surviving partner was living in the UK or a country that pays bereavement payments when the death occurred
The below pdf provides further details
Such payments can of course never take away the pain of losing a loved one but can certainly help a little. Further information can be found on the following Government website: https://www.gov.uk/bereavement-support-payment
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