DWP urges Brits to check if they're owed £8,300 in State Pension back payments

An expert has urged older people to check to see if they could be owed a significant amount of money from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). More than 370,000 pensioners - mostly women - have been contacted to say they could be owed an average of £8,377.

Data from the DWP shows that between 8 January 2024 and 31 March 2025, a joint State Pensions corrections exercise with HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) identified 12,379 underpayments to women whose National Insurance (NI) records are incorrect. As reported by the Daily Record, in 2022 theDWP discovered several State Pension cases where it seemed that historic periods of Home Responsibilities Protection (HRP) were missing, resulting in inaccurate State Pension payments.

To date, approximately £104 million in arrears have been paid out, with an average payment of £8,377. Retirement specialist Helen Morrissey therefore urged older people to fill out the online form or contact the Pension Service if they believe they have been affected.

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This comes after research from the DWP showed the main reasons why those who received a letter from HMRC asking them to check their State Pension - as it could be incorrect - have failed to do so. HMRC has dispatched over 370,000 letters, mostly to women, encouraging them to review their State Pension payments as they may be lower than they are entitled to.

However, DWP research suggests that the majority of people contacted by letter did not proceed to apply for HRP. Obstacles included:

• Misunderstanding the letter
• Believing the communication was fraudulent
• Dependence on digital methods to submit a claim

The HRP scheme, which was designed to safeguard parents' and carers' entitlement to the State Pension, was replaced by National Insurance (NI) credits from 6 April 2010. HMRC is utilising NI records to identify as many individuals as possible who may have been eligible for HRP between 1978 and 2010 but have no HRP on their NI record.

After May 2000, it became compulsory to include an NI number on claims, so those claiming after this point will not have been affected. Ms Morrissey, who is the head of retirement analysis at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: "This research lays bare the complexities the government faces in resolving the long running issue of underpaid State Pensions.

"The State Pension system has become so confusing that even when the UK Government has communicated with those who may have a claim, the complexity and jargon has put many of them off. This means many thousands are getting less than they are entitled to. Issues identified by the Government include the use of jargon.

"Many simply didn't understand what was being asked of them -that mistakes made decades ago had been identified and could be rectified. Terms such as Home Responsibilities Protection haven't been used for many years - it's understandable that people may have little recollection as to whether they claimed it or not.

"The reliance on online forms to claim refunds was also a significant barrier, with many not feeling internet savvy enough to navigate the system without help." Ms Morrissey went on: "Notably many people decided not to take action because they feared doing so might actually reduce their state pension or they were scared that they had been targeted by scammers. It's clear the government faces an uphill battle if it is to successfully reunite those affected with their extra pension payments.

"The introduction of the New State Pension system in 2016 was meant to simplify things - and it should, but again challenges remain for these younger groups. Those who opted out of Child Benefit because of the High-Income Child Benefit Charge will not have known that by doing so they risk missing out on National Insurance credits towards their State Pension."

The UK Government has introduced measures to address this issue, but Ms Morrissey cautions it remains something that can "trip people up and so awareness needs to be raised on an ongoing basis". The pensions specialist concluded: "Encouraging people to check their State Pension record to see if there are any gaps is vital - if there are mistakes, then they have time to correct them.

"If the gap has occurred during a period of time when they qualified for a benefit, such as Child Benefit, then they can backdate a claim and get the gaps filled for free. There's also the option of paying for voluntary contributions to make sure you get the most from your state pension."

For those who reached State Pension age on or after 6 April 2010, any HRP accumulated for full tax years before 6 April 2010 was automatically converted into National Insurance credits, if needed, up to a maximum of 22 qualifying years.

A comprehensive guide to HRP can be found on the GOV.UK website here.