The Department for Work and Pensions has issued a major warning after a popular service was AXED this week. From January 1, the ‘Request information about underpaid State Pension for someone who has died’ service has been discontinued.
In 2020, the Department for Work and Pensions ( DWP ) identified that some of the following people may have been underpaid State Pension: people who were married or widowed when they died and people aged 80 or over when they died.
This is because they did not get the automatic increase in their pension that they were entitled to. If the person who died reached State Pension age before 6 April 2016, if they were married, t hey may have been underpaid if they got less than the lower basic State Pension (also called a Category BL State Pension) or they did not get an increase through their husband, wife or civil partner.
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If they were widowed they may have been underpaid if they did not inherit some of their husband’s, wife’s or civil partner’s State Pension .If they were aged 80 or over t hey may have been underpaid if they were getting some basic State Pension but got less than the amount of the over 80 pension (also called a Category D State Pension).
The DWP said: “Where we knew their details, we wrote to the next of kin or executor of those who may have been affected. We did this between 11 January 2021 and 31 December 2024. You can contact us about someone you think may have been underpaid State Pension if both of the following apply: nyou are their next of kin or executor and we have not contacted you.”
You will need to provide the following information about the person who has died: their full name, their date of birth, their date of death, their last known address, including their postcode and the full name of their husband, wife or civil partner, if they were married or in a civil partnership.
It will help the DWP to deal with your enquiry quicker if you can also provide their National Insurance number.