{
  "_note": "Every fact on the attendance-allowance info page comes from here, with a source and the date it was last checked against that source. Nothing on the page states a fact that is not listed here - anything else is marked TODO rather than guessed. See rules/wording-rules.md.",
  "rates": {
    "effectiveFrom": "April 2026",
    "lowerRate": "£76.70 a week",
    "lowerRateAmount": "£76.70",
    "lowerRateWhen": "day or night",
    "higherRate": "£114.60 a week",
    "higherRateAmount": "£114.60",
    "higherRateWhen": "day and night, or if nearing the end of life",
    "taxFree": true,
    "meansTested": false,
    "source": "https://www.gov.uk/attendance-allowance",
    "source2": "https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/family/attendance-allowance/",
    "lastChecked": "2026-09-21"
  },
  "dementiaCounts": {
    "summary": "Yes. There is no list of qualifying conditions - what counts is the help or supervision the person needs because of a physical or mental disability, not the name of the diagnosis. The official claim form itself uses \"Alzheimers\" as its own example of an illness or disability.",
    "source": "https://www.gov.uk/attendance-allowance/eligibility",
    "formSource": "The claim form (AA1), question 16, page 7.",
    "formSourceUrl": "https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/attendance-allowance-claim-form",
    "lastChecked": "2026-09-21"
  },
  "claiming": {
    "phone": "0800 731 0122",
    "claimStartsFromCallDate": "The claim can start from the date of the call, if the form is returned within 6 weeks.",
    "onlineRestriction": "You cannot apply online if you are an appointee or hold power of attorney.",
    "postTo": "Freepost DWP Attendance Allowance",
    "noStampNeeded": true,
    "afterClaiming": "DWP sends a text or letter within 3 weeks to say when to expect a decision.",
    "source": "https://www.gov.uk/attendance-allowance/how-to-claim",
    "lastChecked": "2026-09-21"
  },
  "endOfLife": {
    "thresholdMonths": 12,
    "summary": "There is a fast route for someone not expected to live longer than 12 months. The 6-month wait is skipped, and a doctor or specialist provides a form called the SR1.",
    "source": "The claim form (AA1), page 2.",
    "sourceUrl": "https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/attendance-allowance-claim-form",
    "lastChecked": "2026-09-21"
  },
  "backdating": {
    "attendanceAllowance": "Attendance Allowance cannot be backdated before the date of the claim.",
    "carersAllowance": "Carer's Allowance can be backdated 3 months, or to the start of the Attendance Allowance award if it is claimed within 3 months of that award.",
    "source": "https://askcpag.org.uk/?id=-223139",
    "lastChecked": "2026-09-21"
  },
  "refused": {
    "summary": "There is one month to ask DWP to look at the decision again.",
    "oneMonthToAsk": "You usually have one month from the date of the decision to ask DWP to look at it again. This is called a mandatory reconsideration.",
    "mrNotice": "DWP writes back with its decision.",
    "oneMonthToAppeal": "If the decision is still wrong, there is usually one month from the date DWP wrote back to appeal to a tribunal, online or by post.",
    "source": "https://www.gov.uk/mandatory-reconsideration",
    "source2": "https://www.gov.uk/appeal-benefit-decision/submit-appeal",
    "lastChecked": "2026-09-21"
  },
  "devolved": {
    "scotland": {
      "name": "Pension Age Disability Payment",
      "url": "https://www.mygov.scot/pension-age-disability-payment",
      "source": "https://www.mygov.scot/pension-age-disability-payment",
      "lastChecked": "2026-09-21",
      "notThisFormBody": "In Scotland, Attendance Allowance has been replaced by Pension Age Disability Payment. It's a different form and a different office.",
      "linkText": "Read about Scotland's scheme",
      "decider": "Social Security Scotland decides."
    },
    "northernIreland": {
      "name": "Attendance Allowance (Northern Ireland)",
      "url": "https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/attendance-allowance",
      "source": "https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/attendance-allowance",
      "lastChecked": "2026-09-21",
      "notThisFormBody": "In Northern Ireland, Attendance Allowance is run by the Department for Communities, with its own form.",
      "linkText": "Read about AA in Northern Ireland",
      "decider": "The Department for Communities decides."
    }
  },
  "qualifyingPeriod": {
    "months": 6,
    "summary": "Attendance Allowance usually needs the help or supervision to have already been needed for about 6 months, unless nearing the end of life, when the wait is skipped.",
    "source": "https://www.gov.uk/attendance-allowance/eligibility",
    "lastChecked": "2026-09-21"
  },
  "statePensionAge": {
    "summary": "Attendance Allowance is only for people who have reached State Pension age. Someone younger may be able to claim Personal Independence Payment (PIP) instead.",
    "checkUrl": "https://www.gov.uk/state-pension-age",
    "source": "https://www.gov.uk/attendance-allowance/eligibility",
    "lastChecked": "2026-09-21"
  },
  "pip": {
    "name": "Personal Independence Payment (PIP)",
    "url": "https://www.gov.uk/pip",
    "source": "https://www.gov.uk/pip",
    "lastChecked": "2026-09-21"
  },
  "takeup": {
    "households": "1.1m",
    "summary": "Over 1.1 million eligible households are thought not to claim Attendance Allowance, worth about £5.2bn a year.",
    "source": "https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/family/attendance-allowance/",
    "lastChecked": "2026-09-21"
  },
  "carersAllowance": {
    "weeklyAmount": "£86.45 a week (April 2026 to April 2027)",
    "eligibility": "To get it, the carer must care for the person for at least 35 hours a week, earn no more than £204 a week after certain deductions, be 16 or over, and not be in full-time education.",
    "personCaredForMustGet": "The person cared for must get a disability benefit such as Attendance Allowance.",
    "statePensionNote": "Someone getting State Pension may not be paid Carer's Allowance itself, but claiming can still increase other help.",
    "scotlandName": "Carer Support Payment",
    "warning": "A carer's claim can reduce some of the benefits of the person they care for, so get a free benefits check first, from Citizens Advice or Age UK.",
    "source": "https://www.carersuk.org/help-and-advice/financial-support/carers-allowance/",
    "source2": "https://www.gov.uk/carers-allowance",
    "lastChecked": "2026-09-21"
  }
}