Higher care DLA, contrib ESA & pension income?

I understand that currently if one is receiving IB and also receiving higher rate care DLA the IB payments will not be reduced by being in receipt of an occupational pension of £85 a week or over. Would such disregard of occupational pension income also apply to new claimants of contributory ESA, i.e.contributory ESA would not be reduced for those applicants who are in receipt of higher rate care DLA? (N.B. I am asking about the position of new claimants and not those who are transferred from IB to ESA.)

Thanks in anticipation.

nofuss wrote:

I understand that currently if one is receiving IB and also receiving higher rate care DLA the IB payments will not be reduced by being in receipt of an occupational pension of £85 a week or over. Would such disregard of occupational pension income also apply to new claimants of contributory ESA, i.e.contributory ESA would not be reduced for those applicants who are in receipt of higher rate care DLA? (N.B. I am asking about the position of new claimants and not those who are transferred from IB to ESA.)

Thanks in anticipation.

The ESA regulations state:-

The Employment and Support Allowance Regulations 2008

Deductions for pension payment and PPF payment

74.—(1) Where—

(a) claimant is entitled to an ESA contributory allowance in respect of any period of a week or part of a week;

(b) there is—

(i) a pension payment;
(ii) a PPF periodic payment; or
the amount of that allowance is to be reduced by an amount equal to 50% of the excess.

(iii) any combination of the payments specified in paragraphs (i) and (ii), payable to that person in respect of that period (or a period which forms part of that period or includes that period or part of it); and
(c) the amount of the payment, or payments when taken together, exceeds—
(i) if the period in question is a week, £85.00; or
(ii) if that period is not a week, such proportion of the amount mentioned in paragraph
(i) as falls to be calculated in accordance with regulation 94(1) or (6) (calculation of weekly amount of income).

There is nothing within the ESA regulations which provide for a disregard, whereby a claimant who is in receipt of the higher rate care component of DLA would not have their ESA entitlement reduced, if they receive a pension of £85 or more a week.

Many thanks for your quick and full reply, Crazydiamond. I greatly appreciate it.