People aged over 66 have until the end of Friday, May 19 to qualify for the £301 cost of living payment if they make a new claim for Pension Credit which later turns out to be successful. The means-tested benefit is worth more than £3,500 each year on average and acts as a gateway to additional help for heating bills, housing costs and Council Tax discounts.
Pension Credit currently gives 127,060 people across Scotland extra money to help with living costs if they are over State Pension age and on a low income. Some older people think because they have savings or own their home they would not be eligible and could be missing out.
Older people - or friends and family - can check eligibility and get an estimate of what they may receive by using the online Pension Credit calculator on GOV.UK here. Alternatively, pensioners can contact the Pension Credit helpline directly to make a claim on 0800 99 1234 - lines are open 8am to 6pm, Monday to Friday.
Who should check for Pension Credit eligibility
If you are over 65 and reached State Pension age before April 6, 2016, you could still qualify for Pension Credit if your weekly income is less than:
- £240.90 if they are single
- £351.45 if they are a couple
Helen Morrissey, head of retirement analysis at Hargreaves Lansdown warns that as many as 1.8 million pensioners are living off less than £100 each week - and most of them are women. She explained: “Many of these people will have other income sources to draw from but there will still be many who are really struggling. The vast majority of these are women and it is likely the lion’s share will have retired under the hugely complex Basic State Pension system.
“Some of them could have been caught out by the State Pension underpayment issue that was highlighted last year where many older women did not receive the uplifts they were due when their husbands retired or died. A huge exercise is under way to find and recompense these women, some of whom could receive thousands of pounds.”
She added: “For those on a low income it is also hugely important that they check their eligibility for Pension Credit. This benefit boosts the incomes of the poorest pensioners and acts as a gateway to other benefits such as help with Council Tax and a free TV licence for the over-75s. However, it remains underclaimed.”
New Pension Credit figures released earlier this week indicated that 31,000 people had started receiving Pension Credit in the three months up to November 2022. However, the charity Independent Age warns hundreds of thousands of pensioners are missing out and the UK Government needs to implement a new take-up policy.
John Palmer, Director of Communications and Policy at Independent Age, explained: “While the statistics show that 31,000 people had started receiving Pension Credit in the three months up to November 2022, it is merely a drop in the ocean compared to the hundreds of thousands of eligible people still missing out.
“It’s hard to know the exact number not receiving the money they are entitled to, as the last published uptake figures the Government provided are for 2019/20, but these showed up to 850,000 eligible older people not receiving the benefit. Though this number will have decreased, there are likely still hundreds of thousands of older people on a low income eligible for this money and not receiving it.”
He continued: “These numbers show that the government’s broad brush approach of awareness raising simply isn’t working fast enough. That’s why we have continually called on the government to implement a Pension Credit uptake strategy that’s targeted and focused on getting money to those that are eligible.
“Older people in need of Pension Credit do not have time to waste, they desperately need this money now. The cost of living crisis is having a severe impact on many older people up and down the country and Pension Credit is potentially life changing for recipients, but it still has one of the worst uptake rates of all the state benefits.”
What is Pension Credit?
Pension Credit currently gives 1.4 million people across the UK extra money to help with living costs if they are over State Pension age and on a low income.
Some older people think because they have savings or own their home they would not be eligible for any Pension Credit, but the DWP said hundreds of thousands could be missing out on the extra money and discounts it provides every month.
Other help if you get Pension Credit
If you qualify for Pension Credit you can also get other help, such as:
- Housing Benefit if you rent the property you live in
- Support for Mortgage Interest if you own the property you live in
- Council Tax discount
- Free TV licence if you are aged 75 or over
- Help with NHS dental treatment, glasses and transport costs for hospital appointments
- Help with your heating costs through the Warm Home Discount Scheme
- A discount on the Royal Mail redirection service if you are moving house
Mixed aged older couples and Pension Credit
In May 2019, the law changed so that a ‘mixed age couple’ - a couple where one partner is of State Pension age and the other is under it - are considered to be a ‘working age’ couple when checking entitlement to means-tested benefits.
This means they cannot claim Pension Credit or pension age Housing Benefit until they are both State Pension age. Before this DWP change, a mixed age couple could be eligible to claim the more generous State Pension age benefits when just one of them reached State Pension age.
How to use the Pension Credit calculator
To use the calculator on GOV.UK, you will need details of:
earnings, benefits and pensions
savings and investments
You’ll need the same details for your partner if you have one.
You will be presented by a series of questions with multiple choice answer options.
This includes:
- Your date of birth
- Your residential status
- Where in the UK you live
- Whether you are registered blind
- Which benefits you currently receive
- How much you receive each week for any benefits you get
- Whether someone is paid Carer’s Allowance to look after you
- How much you get each week from pensions - State Pension, private and work pensions
- Any employment earnings
- Any savings, investments or bonds you have
Once you have answered these questions, a summary screen shows your responses, allowing you to go back and change any answers before submitting. The Pension Credit calculator then displays how much benefit you could receive each week.
All you have to do then is follow the link to the application page to find out exactly what you will get from the DWP, including access to other financial support.
There’s also an option to print off the answers you give using the calculator tool to help you complete the application form quicker without having to look out the same details again. Try the Pension Credit Calculator for yourself or family member to make sure you’re receiving all the financial support you are entitled to claim.
Who cannot use the Pension Credit calculator?
You cannot use the calculator if you or your partner:
are deferring your State Pension
own more than one property
are self employed
have housing costs (such as service charges or Crown Tenant rent) which are neither mortgage repayments nor rent covered by Housing Benefit
How to make a claim
You can start your application up to four months before you reach State Pension age. You can claim any time after you reach State Pension age but your claim can only be backdated for three months.
This means you can get up to three months of Pension Credit in your first payment if you were eligible during that time.
You will need:
your National Insurance number
information about your income, savings and investments
your bank account details, if you’re applying by phone or by post
If you’re backdating your claim, you’ll need details of your income, savings and investments on the date you want your claim to start.
Apply online
You can use the online service if:
you have already claimed your State Pension
there are no children or young people included in your claim
To check your entitlement, phone the Pension Credit helpline on 0800 99 1234 or use the GOV.UK Pension Credit calculator here to find out how much you could get.
To keep up to date with the latest State Pension news, join our Money Saving Scotland Facebook page here, follow us on Twitter @Record_Money, or subscribe to our newsletter which goes out Monday to Friday - sign up here.
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