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Politics · Global

DWP plans Pension Credit leaflets for 660,000 households

The Department for Work and Pensions is launching an awareness campaign about Pension Credit, with leaflets due to reach 660,000 homes across seven UK regions. Independent Age says the benefit is worth an average of more than £4,500 a year and that more than a million eligible older people missed out in 2023/24.

AI-assisted synthesis · Based on 2 outlets' reporting · Full text read from 1 of 2 outletsHow it's made

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2 outletsLatest reporting 3 min read
Coverage: Too few ratedL 0 · C 2 · R 0
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What happened

Key facts

  • The Department for Work and Pensions has launched a Pension Credit awareness campaign.
  • Leaflets are due to be delivered to 660,000 homes (per walesonline.co.uk).
  • The leaflets will be distributed across seven regions throughout the UK (per walesonline.co.uk).
  • Pension Credit is worth more than £4,500 a year on average (per walesonline.co.uk).
  • Independent Age said its analysis found that more than a million eligible older people on low incomes did not receive Pension Credit in 2023/24 (per walesonline.co.uk).
  • People aged 75 or over may qualify for a free TV licence, and Pension Credit Guarantee Credit recipients may qualify for help with NHS dental treatment and glasses (per walesonline.co.uk).
  • The Pension Credit claim line is 0800 99 1234, open Monday to Friday from 8am to 6pm (per walesonline.co.uk).

The brief

The Department for Work and Pensions has launched an awareness campaign urging older people to check whether they qualify for Pension Credit. Leaflets are due to be delivered to 660,000 homes across seven regions throughout the UK. The campaign highlights that the benefit is worth more than £4,500 a year on average, according to WalesOnline’s account of the announcement.

The campaign draws attention to a gap between eligibility and receipt of the benefit. Independent Age, which carried out the analysis cited by WalesOnline, said more than a million older people on low incomes who qualified for Pension Credit did not receive it in 2023/24.

The organisation said those eligible people missed out on a combined £2.5 billion in support during that period. The analysis and figures are attributed to Independent Age; they are not presented as a separate government estimate. The article identifies Morgan Vine as the organisation’s Director of Policy and Influencing and reproduces the analysis’s findings.

It does not provide a breakdown of the estimated missed support or explain how the analysis calculated the total. The information addresses a concern about savings: the article says savings and investments of £10,000 or less do not affect Pension Credit eligibility. It also notes other forms of help that may be available to some recipients.

People aged 75 or over may qualify for a free TV licence, while people receiving the Guarantee Credit element of Pension Credit may qualify for help with NHS dental treatment and glasses. People can contact the Pension Credit claim line on 0800 99 1234. The line is open Monday to Friday, from 8am to 6pm.

The leaflet campaign is intended to raise awareness of the benefit, while the article directs readers to that number for claims. The central figures in the campaign are the 660,000 homes due to receive leaflets, the average annual value of more than £4,500, and Independent Age’s estimate that more than a million eligible older people missed out in 2023/24.

The reported £2.5 billion total is likewise the organisation’s analysis, as cited by WalesOnline.

Why it matters

  • Older people on low incomes who qualify for Pension Credit are the population identified as missing out; Independent Age estimated that more than a million did not receive it in 2023/24.
  • The stated financial mechanism is non-receipt of Pension Credit, which Independent Age valued at a combined £2.5 billion for eligible older people in 2023/24.
  • The campaign is sending leaflets to 660,000 homes and highlights an average annual benefit worth more than £4,500.
  • Pension Credit Guarantee Credit recipients may also qualify for help with NHS dental treatment and glasses; people aged 75 or over may qualify for a free TV licence.

What to watch next

  • Whether the Department for Work and Pensions delivers the leaflets to the 660,000 homes it identified.
  • Whether eligible older people contact the Pension Credit claim line at 0800 99 1234, open Monday to Friday from 8am to 6pm.
  • Whether the campaign leads to changes in Pension Credit receipt among the eligible older people identified in Independent Age’s analysis.

How it's being covered

Coverage analysisShow details
2 source articles · 2 unique outlets
Coverage mix: Too few rated· 2 Center
Where the outlets are based: Europe 100%
Coverage mix
Too few rated
Left
Center
Right
0 outlets
2 outlets
0 outlets
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Geography
Where the outlets covering this story are based.
2 unique outletsDominant coverage: Europe
Limited coverage
  • Coverage is currently limited to 2 outlets.
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Timeline

Developments from this story's sources, dated background we compiled and fact-checked, and our earlier coverage. Each row says which.
  1. Pension Credit began in October 2003, replacing the Minimum Income Guarantee as the main means-tested top-up for people over State Pension age.
    Background · from our historical context
  2. The link between Pension Credit and other support has also changed over time: from August 2020, people aged 75 or over generally needed to receive Pension Credit to qualify for a free TV licence.
    Background · from our historical context

How we got here

Independent Age’s analysis of the 2023/24 financial year found that more than one million older people on low incomes who qualified for Pension Credit did not receive it, documenting a gap between eligibility and take-up before the Department for Work and Pensions’ campaign.

Pension Credit began in October 2003, replacing the Minimum Income Guarantee as the main means-tested top-up for people over State Pension age. It has two parts: Guarantee Credit, which tops up qualifying income, and Savings Credit, designed to reward some people with modest savings or retirement income.

Original sources

2 articles from 2 outlets

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