State Pension Due - What Next?

orwen

Hi,
My State Pension is due to kick in next month. I had the forecast done a while ago - all good.
But I have heard nothing since, & now the retirement date is imminent.
Is there anyone I should contact please - such as the DWP - as a matter of course?
Many thanks!

Dazed_and_C0nfused

You have to claim it, see link below
https://www.gov.uk/new-state-pension/how-to-claim

orwen

Thanks.
Chaos.
Am 65 this March - notice in my pension folder a note from 2016 with Gov.UK telling me that the earliest I can receive my State Pension is March 2022 "when you'll be 66". Huh? Thought retirement age was 65?

Anyway - I go to log into Gov.UK Gateway to see what's going on & the site rejects my user ID &/or password that I successfully created in 2016, & used, & have verification that I logged into Gateway. Now it throws out my details & threatens to lock me out completely if I persist in trying to log in. Who runs UK Gateway - Michael Gove?

So, chaos - I don't know what is going on & cannot log into my GovUK account to find out.
Any ideas please?
Thanks again.

orwen

Just seen this:

"When can I claim the state pension? You can claim state pension when you reach the state pension age. For men and women, this is currently 66." https://www.which.co.uk/money/pensions-and-retirement/state-pension/state-pension-age-calculator-asfz43c0xp8q

Silver lining if so - I can get GovUK Gateway sorted out.

molerat

Your retirement date has not been 65 since 2011 ! 

You need to follow the instructions on the page  to recover your gateway login.

Croeso69

molerat said:

Your retirement date has not been 65 since 2011 ! 

You need to follow the instructions on the page  to recover your gateway login.

Maybe we need to set up MASPI or Back to 65?

orwen

So it was a false alert then - I don't need to claim my State Pension until next year?
Floods of relief - I thought I was going to lose my pension.
'65' retirement age has been drummed into me all my life - it's just a knee-jerk assumption now, soz.

jem16

orwen said:

So it was a false alert then - I don't need to claim my State Pension until next year?
Floods of relief - I thought I was going to lose my pension.
'65' retirement age has been drummed into me all my life - it's just a knee-jerk assumption now, soz.

By the way when you do get to next year please remember that you must claim your state pension and it won't automatically be given to you. You should get an invitation letter to claim your state pension roughly 4 months prior to you reaching 66. Look out for it from around November of this year.

colsten

orwen said:

So it was a false alert then - I don't need to claim my State Pension until next year?
Floods of relief - I thought I was going to lose my pension.
'65' retirement age has been drummed into me all my life - it's just a knee-jerk assumption now, soz.

If you don't claim it, your state pension will automatically be deferred. https://www.gov.uk/deferring-state-pension

Dansmam

Worth persevering with gateway. After years of having to reregister time and again (entirely possible that was down to using incorrect log in details as I get impatient) the details saved to my phone now work. I checked my state pension forecast just this week and those pages are so vastly improved I felt the need to thank them on the feedback page. Good luck!

orwen

Dansmam said:

Worth persevering with gateway. After years of having to reregister time and again (entirely possible that was down to using incorrect log in details as I get impatient) the details saved to my phone now work. I checked my state pension forecast just this week and those pages are so vastly improved I felt the need to thank them on the feedback page. Good luck!

Thank you.
My details were definitely correct - I documented them from 2016 & retained a print-out telling me the last time I successfully logged in, which was in 2016. But no use in fuming, I need to bite the bullet & re-do the log in details: so be it.
Best regards & thanks again