The benefits people would look at not only her income, but also any tangible assets, investments, etc. Sarah not only has a fairly valuable engagement ring, she also has a diamond tiara and other pieces of valuable jewelry. I also think she may have some good furniture and artwork as well as a car. She may consider herself skint, or she may be skint in comparison to her wealthy friends and family, but she's far from skint when compared to the rest of us.