Anyone aged 66 and over is being urged to claim a DWP benefit worth up to £4,200.
Pension Credit provides extra cash to people of State Pension age to help with everyday living costs and it serves as a gateway to an array of other financial support.
The benefit alone is currently worth £3,900 per year on average and those who claim it will automatically be granted this year’s Winter Fuel Payment, worth up to £300.
The deadline to apply for Pension Credit – and secure the Winter Fuel Payment as well – is Saturday, December 21, so pensioners only have a day left to claim it in time.
In reminder to pensioners, the DWP wrote in a post on X: “Do you know someone over 66 who could be entitled to Pension Credit?
“For customers making a Pension Credit claim, lines will now be open on Saturday 21 December from 8.00am to 3.15pm. Ask them to check today.”
The DWP says around 880,000 households are eligible for Pension Credit but fail to claim it and thereby miss out on a vast array of benefits, including help with housing costs, Council Tax discounts, a free TV licence, NHS dental treatment, glasses and transport costs, and help with heating bills though the Warm Homes Discount Scheme.
You can claim Pension Credit with just one phone call to the Pension Credit claim line on 0800 99 1234, or apply online via GOV.UK.
You can apply any time after you reach State Pension age but your claim can only be backdated by three months, so you’ll get three months of Pension Credit in your first payment if you were eligible during that time.
The benefit is worth up to £3,900 per year on average and will soon be paid at a weekly rate of £227.10 per week for a single person and £346.60 for couples, when benefits are uprated in April.
You must have been born before September 23, 1958, live in England, Wales or Northern Ireland, and have been getting one of the following benefits between September 16 to 22, 2024, to be eligible:
The Winter Fuel Payment will be paid into bank accounts by the DWP automatically and will have a payment reference beginning with your National Insurance number followed by ‘DWP WFP’.
The payment is worth £200 for people born between September 23, 1944 and September 22, 1958, and £300 for those born before September 23, 1944. If you don’t receive a payment by January 29, 2025, you should contact the DWP.
