Can you claim pension credit? This way you can supplement your weekly income to at least € 203.85

If you are elderly and not wealthy, your weekly income will be supplemented with a pension credit of up to at least £201.05 for singles and £306.85 for couples.

This guaranteed minimum income will rise by 8.5 per cent in April to £218.15 for singles and £332.95 per week for couples.

Pension credit also opens the door to a lot of extra help with household bills.

You can earn thousands of pounds on top, including help with housing costs, heating, council tax, TV licenses and other bills, and if you receive a pension credit you’ll also be eligible for living expenses payments from the Treasury.

The pension credit is set at a few pounds less per week than the full state pension, which currently stands at £203.85 per week for people retiring since the flat rate system was introduced in April 2016.

Married couples where both partners are eligible for the full AOW amount will receive double, because everyone’s AOW is calculated individually.

This means that people who have paid into National Insurance all their lives are rewarded with a higher income, but the Pension Credit still provides a basic safety net for the poorest elderly.

Successive governments led by both main parties have committed and maintained this system to ensure that the elderly do not spend their final years dying in extreme poverty, without money for necessities such as food, shelter and warmth.

But despite their efforts to reach everyone entitled to benefits, many people are still missing out on supplements to their weekly income.

The government released figures on the use of pension credits last year, which showed that around 880,000, or six in 10 families entitled to them, had not claimed them in 2021/2022.

Up to £2.1 billion went unclaimed, or around £2,200 a year for each family entitled to pension credit but not claiming it.

The pandemic may have distorted the figures, and the government has been running an awareness campaign to encourage vulnerable older people to apply for pension credits.

This tells them to ignore myths that could prevent them from applying – including that having savings, a pension or owning a home are barriers.

The government has also launched a trial aimed directly at people who may be eligible for a pension credit, encouraging them to apply.

Older people who are part of households receiving housing benefit from ten local authorities received letters with an ‘invitation to make a claim’.

However, pension experts have called on the government to do more to reach out directly to people likely to be eligible and ask them to apply.

What are the benefits of applying for pension credits to supplement your income?

A successful application for a pension credit will mean an increase in your income if you are entitled to it, and you will also automatically be eligible for many additional payments and benefits worth thousands of euros in total.

– Rental allowance for your rent, mortgage and service costs. The amount depends on the housing costs in your area.

Our pension columnist Steve Webb explains here how the housing allowance is assessed.

– Help with council tax, depending on your personal circumstances and where you live.

– Addition of informal care allowance.

– Severe disability.

– Dental treatments and glasses vouchers.

– Free TV license if you are over 75.

– Discount for warm houses and payment in cold weather.

How much are you allowed to have in savings?

The government does not want to punish people because they have built up some savings during their lives.

A rainy day fund of £10,000 is waived if you sign up, although that amount was set in 2009 and is worth much less today.

This figure is not a hard limit, but merely the threshold above which the amount of pension supplement you receive begins to be affected.

Every €500 you have in savings above €10,000 is counted as €1 in income per week when calculating your pension balance.

> Read more about the savings rules for pension credits

What other rules do you need to know?

– You must have reached state pension age, currently 66, but you can submit your application up to four months in advance.

– Applications can be made retroactively for three months, provided you were eligible during that period.

– You are only eligible if you and your partner – spouse, registered partner or someone you live with – have both reached state pension age. There is an exception if one of you receives housing benefit from someone who has reached state pension age. The rules for mixed-age couples were introduced in mid-2019 and apply to people who have signed up since then.

– You may be able to receive a small extra supplement, the so-called savings credit, if you reached state pension age before April 6, 2016.

This is currently €15.94 per week, or €17.84 if you have a partner. In April this will rise by 6.7 percent to £17.01 or £19.04.

– You can receive an informal care premium that increases your right to pension credit.

If you are older than the state pension age, this is called an informal care addition.

Steve Webb explains here how the informal care premium works Carers UK has more information here.

– If you postpone an AOW or other pension, you are assumed to receive that income.

– You can still receive a pension discount if you leave the country for up to four weeks, or longer due to exceptions such as bereavement or medical treatment.

– Recipients of pension credits are expected to notify the DWP if their circumstances change. Check out this list of possible changes that affect the pension creditplus the contact details you need to use.

How to apply and where to get help with claims

More information about pension credit here and about the rules about who qualifies here.

You can register by telephone at 0800 99 1234claim pension credit online or receive a form to do this by post.

A friend or family member can submit an application on behalf of an older person.

UK age group staff will also assist with applications. If you call the free helpline, they will check whether you are getting all the benefits you are entitled to, including pension credit.

Any elderly person struggling with bills, or friends and family who are concerned about this, can call 0800 169 65 65.

This line is open every day of the year from 8am to 7pm, or you can drop by Age UK’s help page here.

Age UK also has one free, anonymous benefits calculator who can provide an estimate of what you may be entitled to if you want to know this information privately.

What if you are rejected for a pension discount?

Claims for pension credits have soared, but so have denials, as older people try to boost their incomes to pay rising household bills.

Reasons for refusal of a pension credit application include having too high an income, not living in Great Britain, not providing all the information requested, not applying on time or not being the correct age.

If you think it is wrong, you can ask for the decision to be reviewed, through a process called ‘mandatory reconsideration’. This is free and does not require a lawyer or other legal assistance.