State Pension underpayments are a serious issue that has affected many people across the UK.
The Department for Work and Pensions, or DWP, has confirmed that historical administrative errors have led to thousands of people receiving less State Pension than they should have done.
The government is currently running a massive exercise to identify and correct these mistakes.
However, many people still need to be proactive to ensure they receive the full back payment they are owed.
This step-by-step guide explains who is likely to be affected by these underpayments and the exact process you need to follow to claim any State Pension arrears.
Who is most likely to be owed DWP State Pension back payments?
The underpayment errors mostly affect people who retired under the basic State Pension system.
This means they reached State Pension age before April 2016.
If you receive the new State Pension, you are generally not affected by this specific issue.
The DWP has identified several groups of people who are most at risk of having been underpaid.
These groups should check their entitlement immediately:
- Married women who reached State Pension age before April 2016 and received less than 60% of their husband’s basic State Pension.
- Widows and widowers who did not automatically inherit or increase their State Pension entitlement when their spouse or civil partner died.
- People aged 80 and over who were receiving some basic State Pension but may have been underpaid the Over 80 pension amount.
Why did State Pension underpayments happen in the first place?
The widespread underpayment problem arose due to a number of administrative issues.
These errors mostly affected the process of updating pension records.
In many cases, the DWP failed to correctly increase a person’s pension when an event happened that should have triggered an automatic rise.
These events included a spouse reaching State Pension age or a spouse passing away.
Errors with Home Responsibilities Protection, or HRP, have also caused underpayments. HRP was a system that provided National Insurance credits for people who took time out of work to raise a family.
Mistakes in linking these credits to National Insurance records meant some people did not receive their full entitlement.
Has the DWP already contacted people about receiving back payments?
The DWP is currently running a large correction exercise, called the LEAP exercise.
They are proactively reviewing records to find and fix the underpayments.
They are writing to those people they can easily identify as being affected.
Many married women and those over 80 are receiving their back payments automatically.
However, some groups may still need to contact the Pension Service themselves.
This is especially true if you are a widow or widower, or if you suspect your Home Responsibilities Protection credits are missing.
Therefore, it is important to be proactive rather than simply waiting for a letter from the government.
What are the step-by-step instructions for claiming underpayments?
If you believe you have been underpaid for your State Pension, you must contact the government’s Pension Service immediately.
They are the only official body that can review your record and calculate any arrears that you are owed.
Here is the step-by-step process:
- Gather your personal information: Have your name, date of birth, and National Insurance number ready.
- Gather spouse details: If your claim relates to a spouse or civil partner, have their full name, date of birth, date of death, and their National Insurance number ready too.
- Contact The Pension Service: Call the dedicated Pension Service helpline for State Pension underpayments. Alternatively, you can write to them by post.
- Ask for a review: Explicitly ask them to review your State Pension entitlement based on your or your spouse’s National Insurance contributions.
- Wait for the recalculation: The Pension Service will check your records. They will tell you if you are owed any back payments and what your new weekly rate will be.
Is it possible to claim State Pension back payments for someone who has died?
Yes, the family of someone who was underpaid can make a claim. Many people who were owed money have already passed away.
The next of kin or the executor of the deceased person’s estate should contact the DWP.
You will need to provide specific information about the underpaid person.
You should provide the following information:
- The full name of the person who has died.
- Their date of birth and date of death.
- Their last known address, including the postcode.
- The full name of their husband, wife, or civil partner, if they were married.
The Pension Service has a specific telephone number for these inquiries. They will investigate the records and pay any arrears to the person’s estate.
How far back can State Pension arrears be paid?
There are two different rules for back payments.
For a new State Pension claim, if you delay claiming after reaching State Pension age, you can usually only ask for backdating of up to 12 months.
However, the arrears related to the DWP underpayment exercise are treated differently.
For these historical errors, the DWP will pay the full amount of arrears owed.
This means the back payments can go back many years, often to the date when the underpayment error first began.
What should I do if my back payment amount seems wrong?
Once the DWP has reviewed your case, they will write to you with their calculation of the back payment and your revised weekly pension rate.
If you feel that this amount is still incorrect, you have the right to challenge the decision.
You should seek independent advice before starting a formal challenge.
You can contact organisations like Citizens Advice or Age UK. They offer free and impartial guidance on checking pension entitlements.
They can help you understand the official calculation and decide the best way to proceed with an appeal or complaint.
