If you are one of those pensioners you could be entitled to hundreds or thousands of pounds a year.
Pension credit is comprised of two parts and is a form of government compensation to ensure a certain level of subsistence. Your eligibility may be for one or both parts.
Guarantee credit aims to ensure that everyone over the minimum state pension age, currently 60 but rising to 65 between 2010 and 2020, has a minimum guaranteed income level. The level of income is determined by comparing your actual income with the amount the Government says you need to exist. The level is called the standard minimum guarantee.
Savings credit is paid to persons aged 65 and upwards who have some retirement savings on top of their basic state pension.
You may be entitled to more pension credit if you receive a carer’s allowance or, if a homeowner, you pay service charges and mortgage payments.
Pension credit is means-tested so your income and savings are taken into account when working out your entitlement. Not all income is taken into account and disability and extreme disability allowances are ignored as are war widows’ supplementary pensions.
The payment of pension credit triggers entitlement to other payments such as funeral costs, crisis loans, free school meals and cold weather payments
The maximum period which your pension credit claim can be backdated is three months. Payment is made directly into your bank account which is swift, secure and convenient.
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You could be missing out on valuable government compensation in the form of pension credit.
Personal injury lawyers can assist in your claim for pension credit on a no win no fee basis.
