DWP gives 81,000 state pensioners £3.9k boost and access to Winter Fuel Payment

Thousands of state pensioners have been approved for Pension Credit, a top-up benefit worth around £3,400 a year that provides access to the Winter Fuel Payment. Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced in July that the fuel payment was being restricted to people on Pension Credit and some other means-tested benefits.

Being in receipt of a State Pension is no longer enough to qualify so around 10 million people are now excluded from the allowance. Older people on low incomes who are unable to get Pension Credit are being urged to apply for help from their council's Household Support Fund as the DWP urged local authorities to make sure help is available.

According to the latest figures from the Department for Work and Pensions, since the start of April 2024 it has received 215,200 Pension Credit claims and made decisions on 161,800 of them with 81,000 people awarded the benefit and the other 81,500 rejected. Those who are now receiving Pension Credit will be receiving the £200-£300 fuel payment this year.

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Any claims for Pension Credit approved by December 21 will still be in time to get the Winter Fuel Payment. This is because the benefit can be backdated by three months, thereby covering the qualifying dates in September that determine who fits the criteria.

The DWP said there had been a 145 per cent increase in the number of Pension Credit claims received in the past 16 weeks compared to the same timeframe before the Chancellor's announcement. It explained: "We have received around 150,000 Pension Credit claims in the 16 weeks since the announcement on July 29 (which is up to and including the end of the week beginning November 11, 2024). This is compared to around 61,300 Pension Credit claims in the 16 weeks before the announcement."

The number of Pension Credit claims successfully awarded the benefit has increased by 17 per cent, from 36,400 in the 16 weeks before the Chancellor's announcement to 42,500 in the 16 weeks after it. The number of Pension Credit refusals in those periods has also gone up, from 27,100 to 53,100.

However, the approval of 42,500 claims in the 16 weeks since the announcement is less than 5 per cent of the 880,000 people the Government says are missing out on Pension Credit. Age UK said it was "a massive disappointment" that so many people are having their claims turned down, adding the figures show the Government is "struggling to keep up" with the number of applications.

Caroline Abrahams, charity director at Age UK, said: "The system was not designed to deal with so many applications all at once – a situation which is a direct result of the Government's disastrous decision to severely ration the Winter Fuel Payment with little notice. There's still time for the Treasury to soften the blow on pensioners living on low and modest incomes before the worst consequences of its policy change play out this winter, but only just."

Pensions minister Emma Reynolds said: "We're pleased to see more pensioners are now receiving Pension Credit and our staff are processing claims as quickly as possible. With December 21 approaching, my message is clear: check if you are eligible for Pension Credit and if you are, then apply, as it unlocks a range of benefits, including the Winter Fuel Payment."

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