To be eligible for Attendance Allowance you must have reached State Pension age. It has a lower rate and a higher rate and your care and supervision needs are assessed to find out which rate you qualify for.
The assessment looks at whether you need frequent attention from a carer to help with bodily functions, like dressing, eating, bathing and going to the toilet, or continual supervision to prevent any dangers to yourself or others, during the day and/or night.
You must have had these care needs for at least six months and expect them to continue.
Unlike Personal Independence Payment or Adult Disability Payment (Scotland), Attendance Allowance does not have a mobility component so it does not assess whether your disability affects your ability to get around.
Attendance Allowance is not means-tested, which means your income and savings are ignored when checking if you are entitled to this benefit. It is also ignored as income when calculating entitlement to other benefits so it won’t reduce any benefits you already get. In fact, if you get Attendance Allowance you will qualify for extra amounts called disability premiums in other benefits like Pension Credit. It is always worth doing a new benefit check if you become entitled to Attendance Allowance.