What is Attendance Allowance?

Attendance Allowance (AA) is a tax-free benefit for people aged 65 and over who have a disability and who need help with personal care or supervision.

If you are deaf, you can claim AA if you need help or support to communicate. You may also get AA if you have care or supervision needs because you have other disabilities.

For more details, see our factsheet "Attendance Allowance - information for deaf and hard of hearing people".

What is Disability Living Allowance (DLA)?

DLA is a benefit for children and adults up to the age of 64. You can claim DLA whether you are in work, out of work or studying.

You can claim DLA if you need support to communicate, or if you have mobility problems as a result of hearing loss or physical limitations. These are called the "care component" and "mobility component" of DLA.

DLA is not means-tested, so it doesn't matter if your income or savings are high. And it is non-contributory, which means that you do not need to have made National Insurance contributions in order to be entitled to it.

You can find out more in our factsheets:

• "Disability Living Allowance - information for deaf and hard of hearing people"
• "Challenging Disability Living Allowance and Attendance Allowance (AA) decisions".

What is Incapacity Benefit?

IB is a benefit paid to people over the age of 16 who cannot work because of illness or disability. Your income or amount of savings does not affect whether you can get IB but there are different rules for claiming it, depending on how old you are, and whether you have paid enough National Insurance contributions. You may also be able to claim an extra amount for your partner.

IB is assessed and paid by Jobcentre Plus (external link, opens new browser window) or social security offices, which are part of the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) (external link, opens new browser window) .

For more information, see our factsheet "Benefits and incapacity for work - information for deaf and hard of hearing people".

What is Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit?

Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit compensates people who have become disabled as a result of an industrial disease or accident at work. 

You can claim it if you became deaf because you were exposed to noise at work over a period of time. This is called occupational deafness. You can also claim it if your deafness was caused by an accident at work.

For more information, see our factsheet "Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit - information for deaf and hard of hearing people".

What is the War Disablement Pension?

The war pension scheme gives money to ex-service personnel for any disablement caused by service. You can claim a War Disablement Pension if your deafness is the result of military service or wartime experiences.

For more information, see our factsheet "War pensions - information for deaf and hard of hearing people". You can also contact the Royal British Legion (external link, opens new browser window) which has a specialist advice and support service for enquiries.

Who can help me with my claim?

For more information about how to claim benefits and who can help, read our web page on How to claim benefits.