'Universal Credit killed my dad' - Grieving Daughter Slams System After Tragic Death

Brian Bailey's family believe he tragically took his own life after becoming overwhelmed by the pressures of Universal Credit

A grieving daughter has hit out at the Universal Credit benefit system, claiming that the pressures that it put on her father led him to take his own life.

Grimsby man Brian Bailey, 59, tragically took his own life on Tuesday, July 17, after allegedly "becoming overwhelmed" with the pressures that the new benefits system had put on him, feeling that he could not cope with the uncertainty regarding his payments, and constantly fearing being evicted from his home. His daughter Leann Bailey has now hit out at the "complete mess" that she thinks Universal Credit has become, feeling that if changes are not made soon, other vulnerable people could find themselves in the same position as her father.

She says that the problems started with her father in April after he was informed that he had been deemed fit for work following a medical and could no longer receive his Employment and Support Allowance and would have to sign-up to Universal Credit. She said: "It was when my father was told that he would have to sign up to Universal Credit that all of the trouble began.

"The whole system was designed to be used online, something that my father was just unable to do as he had no ability or knowledge of how to use a computer, and he was having to ring me every single day in order to answer the messages that he constantly received. "He was receiving about £600 a month, which he needed to pay his rent, council tax, bedroom tax and utilities, so he had very little to live on every month, and constantly feared that he may lose his home.

Brian Bailey, who sadly took his own life after struggling to cope under Universal Credit.

"Every time that he was contacted regarding his benefits he immediately started having a panic attack and would get stressed because he just did not know what to do."

Brian had suffered from a number of mental health issues, such as depression and anxiety, along with a battle with alcoholism, however, had been eight months sober when he was told to sign-up for Universal Credit.

Image: Leanne Bailey, of Grimsby, holds a picture of her late father, Brian Bailey, who sadly took his own life recently.

His biggest problem with the service was the apparent lack of help that was available to him, with him constantly asking to have a one to one meeting with someone at the job center, so that they could explain to him properly what the new service entails and how he could function with it.
However, every phone call that he or Leann would make seemed to be geared towards "getting them off of the phone, and pushed towards a computer".

Leann continued: "Universal Credit just does not seem to take into account the needs of vulnerable people in society, if you can't use a computer then you are just left hanging without any real form of help.

"When you ring and try and ask for an appointment, it was like they were just trying to get you off the phone and onto a computer. "My father had a personal caseworker with the service, who was a really lovely and helpful lady who seemed to really want to support him, but even she was not able to help him understand the system.
"Every month my father was worried about what bills would be paid, and how he would pay the rent. "None of this was explained to him, and he was constantly having to ring different people to make sure that his taxes and bills were paid, which just added to his anxiety and depression.

Leanne Bailey, of Grimsby, holds a picture of her late father, Brian Bailey, who sadly took his own life after struggles with Universal Credit. 

"It feels like they threw him into the deep end, and without any guidance and understanding he was just not able to stay afloat and everything overwhelmed him until he did something drastic."

Leann is now calling on the Department of Work and Pensions to create a welcome pack or information leaflet that would help vulnerable people who are not computer literate properly understand the new benefits system that they are using.

"My father would constantly say to me that he wished that there was some form of instruction manual or guidebook, he wouldn't find the whole process so scary and worrying, but there is nothing like that available to him.

"It doesn't seem fair that the DWP are pushing people towards friends and family, who often have no experience of the benefits system, for help.

"I have never been on benefits in my life, yet I was the only person that my father could come to for help. He would ring me every day in a flood of tears after he received a text message telling him that he had to do something in his journal, and he just didn't know what to do."

A Department of Work and Pensions spokesperson said: "Our thoughts are with Mr. Bailey’s family at this difficult time. Suicide is a very complex issue. Our staff is trained to identify and support vulnerable people and can refer them to specialist organizations for help."

Image: Brian Bailey.

ABC Note: The Independent newpaper revealed in 2017 - attempted suicides among out-of-work disability benefit claimants have more than doubled since the introduction of fit-to-work assessments in 2008. 

According to new analysis of NHS data from surveys taken in 2007 and 2014, nearly half of people surveyed on out-of-work disability benefits said in 2014 that they had attempted to take their own lives. Results from the 2007 survey – taken a year before the controversial work capability assessment (WCA) test began – show 21 per cent of incapacity benefit claimants had attempted suicide, meaning the proportion more than doubled in seven years.

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