Editorial policy
This site tells people what money they may be owed, so being wrong has a real cost. Here is exactly how figures get verified, what happens when we cannot confirm something, and how to tell us we have made a mistake.
Where our figures come from
Every rate, threshold and deadline on this site is taken from a primary official source, not from another website's summary of one. In practice that means:
- Ireland — gov.ie, the Department of Social Protection, Revenue, and the Citizens Information Board's annual Benefits and Taxes rates.
- Northern Ireland — nidirect and the Department for Communities.
- England — GOV.UK and the relevant department.
Where a page states a figure, the source is listed on that page so you can check it yourself. We would rather you verified us than took our word for it.
Every link is checked before it is published
A cited link that leads nowhere is worse than no link at all — it looks authoritative and tells you nothing. So every official URL we cite is confirmed to actually load before the page goes live, and dead links get replaced rather than quietly left in place.
When we cannot confirm something, we say so
This is the part most money websites get wrong, and it is the rule we are most attached to.
Real examples currently live on the site:
- Our payment dates page gives a confirmed weekday for six payments and says "varies" for Carer's Allowance and Jobseeker's, because we could not confirm a single national day — printing a guess there would cost someone a wasted trip to the post office.
- Our UK payment dates page states no frequency for PIP and Attendance Allowance for the same reason, and flags 2027 bank holidays as provisional because GOV.UK has not settled them.
- Our Budget 2027 page labels every measure as confirmed, expected, campaigned for, or ruled out, because the Budget has not happened yet and anyone quoting firm figures today is guessing.
Estimates are labelled as estimates
Our calculators produce estimates, not decisions. They apply the published rules to the numbers you enter; they cannot see your full circumstances, and no tool on this site can approve or refuse a claim. Where a result depends on something we cannot know, the page says so rather than presenting a confident number.
How pages are kept current
Rates change every January in Ireland, and again whenever a Budget lands. Pages carry a review date so you can see how fresh the information is, and anything tied to a specific year says which year it applies to. When a Budget or uprating changes a figure, the affected pages are updated and re-dated.
Corrections
If a figure here does not match the official source, that is a mistake and we want to fix it. Email us and it goes to the front of the queue — see contact. We would far rather be corrected than be confidently wrong about money someone is owed.
Who writes this
The People's Pocket is written and run by one person, publishing as Zak Carolan. Not a content farm and not an agency. We are not accountants, solicitors or regulated financial advisers, and nothing here is personalised advice — it is public information explained in plain English.
Independence
We take no money from any bank, advertiser, supermarket, sponsor or government body. There are no adverts and no affiliate links anywhere on the site, and there is no paywall. Nothing on this site is influenced by anyone paying for it, because nobody does — see how we make money for the full picture.
Common questions
Where do your figures come from?
Primary official sources only: gov.ie, the Department of Social Protection, Revenue and the Citizens Information Board's Benefits and Taxes rates for Ireland; nidirect for Northern Ireland; GOV.UK for England. Each page lists its sources so you can check them yourself.
What happens if you cannot verify something?
We do not publish it as fact. We say it is unconfirmed and point you to where your own case can be checked. That is why our payment-dates pages say 'varies' for some payments instead of printing a day that might be wrong for you.
Are your calculators official?
No. They are free estimate tools that apply the published rules to the figures you enter. They cannot see your circumstances and cannot approve or refuse a claim. Only the relevant department can decide your entitlement.
How often are pages updated?
Rates change every January in Ireland and whenever a Budget lands. Pages carry a review date, and anything year-specific says which year it applies to. Affected pages are updated and re-dated when figures change.
Do advertisers or sponsors influence your content?
There are none. No adverts, no affiliate links, no sponsorship, and no money from any bank, supermarket or government body. Nobody pays us, so nobody influences us.
Is this financial advice?
No. It is public information explained in plain English. We are not accountants, solicitors or regulated financial advisers. For advice on your own case, Citizens Information and MABS in Ireland, and Citizens Advice in the UK, are free.