People claiming State Pension urged to check if they qualify for weekly payment boost of up to £182
23.10.2022 - 00:25
/ dailyrecord.co.uk
The latest figures from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) show that in February 2022, nearly 12.5 millions people across the UK were receiving State Pension payments, including 1.1 million living abroad and 992,052 in Scotland.
Of the overall UK total, there are 10.1 million older people receiving Basic State Pension payments of up to £141.85 per week, compared to 2.4 million getting New State Pension payments, which are worth up to £185.15 each week. Worryingly, there are over 1.9 million people receiving less than £100 per week in State Pension payments and just under 1.5 million of these are women.
However, Helen Morrissey, senior pensions and retirement analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown warns at least some of those on the lowest State Pension payments could be missing out on a DWP benefit worth more than £3,300 each year in financial support, discounts and other benefits.
Ms Morrissey explained: “At least some of them could be helped by applying for Pension Credit, a benefit designed to top up the income of the poorest pensioners which also acts as a gateway to other benefits such as help with NHS costs and a free TV licence for the over 75s.
“The UK Government held a Day of Action in June designed to boost awareness of this much under-claimed benefit to help more people access this extra money. We hope to see a surge in the number of claimants when the next batch of data is published.”
Ms Morrissey added: “Some of these people will have other pensions they can use to supplement their income but those who don’t face incredibly difficult times as the costs of essentials like fuel and food continue to soar.”
She also highlighted how women continue to close the gender State Pension gap with average incomes up to
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