Q As I receive Disability Living Allowance at the middle rate for care, my wife applied for Carer's Allowance (CA). She was told that she could not get it because of her State pension and that underlying entitlement to it only went to those on Pension Credit (PC). Is this right?

A Not really. Having underlying entitlement to CA means you are more generously treated in your claims for PC, Housing and Council Tax Benefits. This applies whether you already have these benefits, or if you are to claim them in the future.

Q I am 74 and my wife is 71. Our weekly income from pensions comes to £214.64 and our savings are £4,500. Can we get any help with our £780 a year council tax?

A Yes. £7 a week.

Q I have retirement pension of £80.08, Pension Credit of £26.60 and Attendance Allowance of £38.30. How much in savings would I have to have before it affected my benefits?

A Savings over £6,000 reduce Pension Credit (PC) but, if you have just come into some money, it will not affect your benefit for at least five years. Also, if you live alone and no one gets Carer's Allowance for looking after you, then you are not receiving enough PC.

Q As I have been receiving Incapacity Benefit - originally called Invalidity Benefit - since before 1995, my benefit is still tax-free. Can I continue to claim it, instead of taxable retirement pension, when I reach pension age?

A No. Incapacity Benefit currently stops at 65 for men and 60 for women.

Q Can a woman who has paid National Insurance (NI) all her life get a State Pension at 60? What happens when her husband reaches 65?

A Thirty-nine years' NI contributions will give her a standard rate retirement pension - currently £77.45 a week - at 60. These must be full rate contributions, as the married woman's stamp does not count. This pension would be unaffected by her husband reaching 65.

Q I have been receiving Carer's Allowance (CA) and Income Support (IS) for looking after my mother. Now she has died, must I sign on as unemployed, even though I am six months off retirement at 60?

A CA and IS for carers end eight weeks after the cared-for person has died. After that, normal jobseekers' rules apply and that means signing on.