Is Widow's Pension of £66.00 pwk Right?

Truegho

My 70-year-old auntie has just become a widow, and has been told that she is only entitled to £66.00 pwk state pension.

Is this right? Surely she is entitled to a top-up?

mania112

Was she out of work for a large portion of her career?

sleepless_saver

Unless she has a very large amount of capital, and/or other sources of income bringing her income up to the level the government says she needs, then she will be entitled to pension credit. https://www.gov.uk/pension-credit/overview . She can phone the Pension Service 0800 99 1234 who will take her claim and check her entitlement.

hugheskevi

It appears that someone is confusing inheritance of State Pension with the pension a married person can get based on their (living) partner's National Insurance contribution record.

Assuming that your aunt was married and that her spouse had a full basic State Pension of £110.15 p/w, that is what your aunt should receive.

The rules are different about inheriting additional pension, but if her husband had additional pension she will also inherit some of that.

xylophone

https://www.gov.uk/state-pension/further-information
"What happens to your state pension when you die"

Dunroamin

Truegho wrote: »

My 70-year-old auntie has just become a widow, and has been told that she is only entitled to £66.00 pwk state pension.

Is this right? Surely she is entitled to a top-up?

If any other income is below the level she can claim pension credit.

Truegho

hugheskevi wrote: »

It appears that someone is confusing inheritance of State Pension with the pension a married person can get based on their (living) partner's National Insurance contribution record.

Assuming that your aunt was married and that her spouse had a full basic State Pension of £110.15 p/w, that is what your aunt should receive.

The rules are different about inheriting additional pension, but if her husband had additional pension she will also inherit some of that.

Her husband was on Invalidity Benefit.

Tosca3

That is exactly what I got for 52 weeks, then nothing.

I am 51, think it is age dependent.

Pollycat

When my Dad was alive, my Mum got about the same amount of state pension - £65-£70 per week, I guess she'd not paid a full stamp throughout her working life.

When my Dad died (Mum was late seventies at that stage), her pension jumped up to almost double.

How much pension was your Auntie getting before her husband died?

atush

In the year the husband would have received SP, if he wasn't already getting it, she should get the full SP as his widow.

If her income is low before this, she can get pension credit.

jem16

Truegho wrote: »

Her husband was on Invalidity Benefit.

What age was he?