An estimated 3.8 million women across Great Britain missed out on State Pension payments due to a change in retirement age. Between April 2010 and November 2018, it rose from 60 to 65 for women, and in October 2020 it increased to 66 for both men and women.
In July 2021, the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) ruled that the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) failed to communicate the changes to women born in the 1950s with enough urgency, finding it guilty of maladministration, and is currently investigating the harm caused. However, DWP will not take any action until the investigation is complete as it is bound by the judiciary process.
However, Labour MP Tonia Antoniazzi recently asked DWP if it had “made an assessment of the potential merits of establishing an alternative disputes resolution process for people affected by changes in State Pension age for women” - often referred to as the WASPI women [Women Against State Pension Inequality campaign].
