Dealing with DWP after death of a parent

thegreenone

@Robbie64

Thank you for that.

Newly_retired

Given the huge fiasco over underpayment of many women’s pensions going back years, which 500 staff have been moved over to sort out, I would be surprised if the DWP pursue any claim for one week’s potential overpayment  of SRP.

numbersrule

Robbie64 said:

My dad died last October and I am the executor of his estate. Just about everything is now sorted out. His flat has been sold, all debts have been settled and all that remains is to distribute the money according to his wishes. Except for one problem - the DWP. When dad died he was owed a week's state pension, or at least I think he may have been. But I cannot get through to the DWP to find out if he is owed a week's pension. Also the advice I have recived is not to distribute any monies until the DWP (Debt Management? or at least the part that deals with estates) have confirmed no money is owing to them. There isn't as my dad told me that other than claiming his state pension he had never claimed any other benefits since he had a fortnight off work sick in 1977 (there was no SSP back then, anyone on the sick for more than 3 days had to claim Sickness Benefit from the old DHSS).

Can anyone advise me on what i can do? I've tried ringing the Pension Service but they never answer the phone and I can't ring them all day every day. As an executor I could be personally liable if I distribute the monies and the unlikely scenario of an overpayment happens to occur.

The best way to communicate with organisations that don't answer the phone is to write to them via paper post with the help of a postage stamp.
For my late Uncle recently, the postal address was

The Pension Service
Mail Handling Site A
Wolverhampton
WV98 1AF

They responded within about 4 to 6 weeks.

They may send you a BR330 Form to complete for the pension payment.

I was told there is a 12 month cut-off after which Winter Fuel Payments cannot be paid out if bank details have not been provided by then.

SevenOfNine

thegreenone said:

My late Mum received pension payments the day after she died (1/11/20) and a week later plus the winter fuel allowance.

I have the money aside but DWP haven't been in touch at all.  Perhaps once her flat is, finally(!), sold, I will get a letter.

Robbie64 is absolutely correct, you won't have to pay back the winter fuel allowance. My mum died on 7.11.20 & I was specifically told I didn't have to (alive on the qualifying dates to keep it as Robbie has given).

My mum's pension was paid weekly in advance. Because NatWest were so utterly useless, incapable of freezing her a/c even though my name was on it as well & I even had a d/c, 2 payments I'd tried to block went through £307.94.

Despite pestering DWP so I could pay it back, in the end I just sat on it until they finally asked for it. My understanding was that if you have used the Tell Us Once facility, state pension paid AFTER the date you did that does not have to be repaid, DWP don't have the facility to chase the estate for it, though they will ask once for it, & apparently don't make it clear you don't have to comply. I preferred to give it back, she wasn't entitled to it, so fair play.

It is on the government website, can't find it at the moment but this article probably clarifies it more clearly than I have.  https://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/pensions/article-6830067/Bereaved-people-NOT-return-state-pension-wrongly-paid-deceased.html

sheramber

Having died last October any pension due to him for the one week, should have been paid by now,