Millions of people are estimated to be missing out on benefits even though they could be eligible, a new report has claimed. Nearly eight billion pounds worth of universal credit is not being claimed with over one millions eligible households missing out, according to new analysis by the Policy in Practice.
The new report published this week estimates that “£7.5 billion of universal credit is unclaimed by 1.2 million eligible households and £2.9 billion of council tax support is unclaimed by over 2.7 million eligible households each year." It also suggests that the total amount of unclaimed income-related benefits and social tariffs is nearly £19 billion a year, reports the Daily Record.
The think tank's blog post also highlighted that social tariffs are significantly underclaimed and found that broadband social tariffs have the lowest take up, with 97% of eligible households missing out on the cheaper rates tariffs. The report has urged people on means-tested benefits to check for eligibility with their provider, with so many missing out on help in the ongoing cost of living crisis.
