Could YOU be owed £6,000 in backdated pension payments?

2023-02-21

Could YOU be owed £6,000 in backdated pension payments? Martin Lewis reveals thousands of women have been underpaid and explains how to find out if you can claim money back

More than 230,000 women could be owed up to £6,000 in backdated pension
On his ITV show, Martin Lewis explained how married women and widows could find out what they are owed, with viewers crashing the Government’s website
READ MORE: 800k families could be missing out on £2k tax-free childcare a year

Martin Lewis has revealed that due to a DWP (Department for Work and Pensions) error, some women may be owed up to £6,000 in backdated pension payments.

Speaking tonight on his ITV programme, The Martin Lewis Money Show, the money saving expert detailed how many married women and widows may have been underpaid.

During the show, many viewers jumped online to check what they could be owed, crashing the Government’s pension website.

More than 230,000 women are thought to have been underpaid their state pension and could be due a payout – with the average amount being more than £6,000.

According to Mr Lewis, married women who hit state pension age before April 2016, including widows and divorcees, and the over-80s, whether married or not – should check if they’re owed.

On his ITV show, Martin Lewis explained how married women and widows could find out what they are owed from the old state pension after the DWP made an error

The financial guru, 50, explained that this is for those who are at the age of 70 with an old basic state pension at less 60 per cent of their husbands.

He said: ‘Now first of all you’ve got some automatic top-ups and backdating and they’re [the DWP] working through it now, so you’ll get them.

‘So if your husband was 65 after the 16th of March 2008 (I told you it’s complicated) and the wife’s pension didn’t rise when he retired, and it’s under 60 per cent you may get that top up.’

More than 230,000 women are thought to have been underpaid their state pension and could be due a payout – with the average amount being more than £6,000

The money saving expert also explained how there is an automatic top-up for any woman who is 80 plus and was paid under £85 a week of the state pension.

However, focusing on the larger theme, Martin explained that those on the old state pension under 60 per cent will need to claim it back.

Although he admitted it was a complicated process, he said there are many free tools online and the Pension Service, which you can call.

Mr Lewis said you should check if ‘for example, you husband turned 65 before March 2008 and you’re paid under 60 per cent or you got divorced after retirement and your pension is less than your ex-husbands, now these can be back dated sometimes, but only for up to a year.’

But if the woman has passed away now and it has gone to her inheritors they may be able to claim the backdated too.

Someone wrote into the show to explain how this advice had enabled them to claim over £8,000 in back payments

The financial guru, 50, explained that this is for those who at the age of 70 with an old basic state pension at less 60 per cent of their husbands

The 50-year-old financial guru added: ‘So basically if you’re a woman, you’re aged over 70 and you’ve got a very low state pension then you need to go and do some reading on this.’

Someone wrote into the show to explain how this advice had enabled them to claim over £8,000 in back payments.

Writing to the ITV show a woman named Virginia said: ‘Martin told us that the DWP had made a payment error to retired women whose pension was not 60 per cent of their husband’s pension.

‘I contacted the DWP and received a back payment amount of £8,474. Thank you so much, it is going to be a big help to us during the increase in energy prices.’

How to check if you’re owed and claim your payout

To check if you have been underpaid and are owed, contact the Pension Service and ask about your situation (also do this if you fall under any other categories but want to be sure you will get what you’re owed). You can either:

Call 0800 731 0469 (press option two, then option four, then option two).
Request information on behalf of someone who has died through DWP’s online tool.
Or write in to: The Pension Service Post Handling Site A Wolverhampton WV98 1AF.

Or you will find other contact details on the Pension Service website. Please be aware that the Pension Service is working through these historic cases so may not be able to give you any information at this time. They have said that those who are owed underpaid state pension will be paid it in due course.

If you believe you may have missed out because you didn’t know you could claim a boosted pension, you can do a quick initial check to see if you may be owed using an underpaid state pension calculator developed by pensions advisory firm Lane Clark & Peacock.

You’ll need to enter a few details about your and your husband’s ages, the dates when you both hit state pension age, and details of how much you’re both getting as your basic state pension amounts.

Source: https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/

Earlier this month a viewer of Martin Lewis’s ITV show revealed how she saved £575 a year after sending two texts to change her mobile phone bill.

The fan, known only as Carole, shared her success story on Tuesday’s Martin Lewis Money Show Live, explaining how a tip shared by the financial guru in a previous episode helped her slash her phone bill.

Writing to the programme, she revealed: ‘I sent INFO to 85075 as advised by you, my current provider contacted me and I’m now on a SIM-only deal.

‘I have unlimited calls and texts, 15GB of data, free EU roaming – and I keep my own number – for just £8 a month, saving £575 a year.’

In a previous episode, Martin explained how to check if you’re still in a contract with your current provider – if you’re not, then it means you’re free to switch to a cheaper deal elsewhere.

To find out if you’re in a contract, customers need to text INFO to 85075 for free. A reply should then tell you if you have any exit fees to pay to leave your supplier.

If you decide to switch from your current provider, but want to keep your number, you can text PAC to 65075 for free on your phone.

You will receive a PAC code from your supplier, which you’ll need to give to the mobile phone company you plan to move to.

Replying to Carole, Martin said: ‘Wow, that’s very good… I’m glad to hear this worked at home. You should try it and then, if you know you’re free to leave, it means you’re out of contract.

‘Either you can try and see what your provider’s cheapest deal is, haggle with them, or go on a comparison website and see what the cheapest you can get is.

‘Just look at the size of the savings. So many people stay on high rates and you can slash it by 70 per cent or 80 per cent.’

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