Pension credit: Do you qualify?

If you’re over state pension age, on a low income and live in the UK, you could be getting an extra £60/week in pension credit*. Here’s a summary and quick links on how to get started.

• Pension credit can be worth £3,000/year* on average. If you’re over state pension age, live in the UK, and earn less than £182.60/week* as a single person, or £278.70/week* (including savings and pensions) as a couple, then the main element of pension credit tops up your income to those amounts. If you’ve additional income or you’ve saved for retirement you could get more via the ‘savings credit’ element.
• Pension credit is also a gateway to FREE TV licenses and MUCH MORE. Those who claim the main part of pension credit can get discounts on other bills such as council tax reduction – worth about £1,000/year typically, and the warm home discount – worth £140/year. See all the other extras you can get with pension credit.
• It is NOT automatic so you MUST claim – here’s how. You can apply via Gov.uk if you’ve already claimed your state pension, but otherwise you’ll need to phone the Pension Service on 0800 99 1234 (or the NI Pension Centre on 0808 100 6165). You can backdate it for three months, so the quicker you check, the quicker you’ll benefit.

 

*https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/savings/pension-credit