Story about the state pension that has been underpaid for twenty years: this is the Money podcast

The debacle over widespread flaws in state pensions that This is Money and Sir Steve Webb exposed continues.

By the end of October last year, DWP had paid out just under half a billion pounds to more than 80,000 people who were underpaid.

But what about those who have died? This week, Tanya Jefferies, Lee Boyce, Angharad Carrick and Georgie Frost reveal the case in which a letter was sent to the daughter of a 100-year-old man three years after his death, telling him he had been receiving an unpaid state pension for 20 years.

But despite the letter, months later she was left wondering what the DWP would actually do about it.

And still on the state pension front, people continue to complain about topping-up chaos as the government prepares to launch a new online service next month.

Sir Steve is calling on DWP and HMRC to recruit more staff.

You don’t need HMRC to have more staff to answer your call, oh no! You just have to be a VIP.

Apparently there is a helpline, known as Public Department 1 (PD1), that answers calls nine times faster. We explain more.

On the savings front, the FCA is launching a campaign to encourage savers to shop around – and if you were rushing to sign up for a one-year fixed rate Isa this time in 2023, Lee explains why you need to take action.

Optional and mandatory service charges at catering establishments – Georgie, Ang and Lee give their verdict.

And finally, the price of bitcoin rose above $60,000 this week. What’s Behind the Cryptocurrency’s Latest Rise?