April State Pension paid early to avoid increase?

naomigilchrist

Has anyone else noticed that their State Pension has been paid early this month BEFORE the increase date (10th April) and WITHOUT the 10.1% increase? Call me cynical but I can’t help but think that this is a deliberate policy on behalf of the government to avoid paying the increase this month! My husband’s pension has always been paid AFTER 10th of the month and yet miraculously it was paid on 6th April this month when the increase takes affect from 10th April…

ian16527

My father gets paid weekly and his has gone up.
Is this just because of easter holidays

naomigilchrist

My husband’s has remained the same as it was before and I can’t think that it’s due to Easter as he has never had it before the 13th of the month and that’s well after the Easter bank holiday…

Misslayed

State pension is paid every 4 weeks, so the date changes every month. 

Silvertabby

Probably paid earlier because of the 4 day bank holiday weekend.

ie, payments due today (Good Friday) or Monday (Easter monday) will have been paid yesterday.  Can you imagine the fuss if payments had been witheld until next Tuesday!

westy22

The SP has always been paid with the first week of the tax year at the old rate, followed by 51 weeks at the new rate.  That is how HMRC record the value of SP paid in any tax year.  When you complete self-assessment the SP should always be calculated as 1 x old rate plus 51 x new rate.

Ayr_Rage

Pensions are paid in arrears so any money owing due to the increase will of course be paid.

Would you rather have had it paid late due to the Easter holidays ?

naomigilchrist

Misslayed said:

State pension is paid every 4 weeks, so the date changes every month. 

Thanks …looks like we’ve just been unlucky with timing then 😬

molerat

Last year ours were paid on 14th, due on 15th & 18th, because of Easter and were at 3 old and one new rate as is correctly the case.

xylophone

My father gets paid weekly and his has gone up.
Is this just because of easter holidays

Somebody I know whose old state pension is paid weekly in advance and whose normal payment day would have been Easter Monday, received SP at the new rate yesterday.

jem16

naomigilchrist said:

Misslayed said:

State pension is paid every 4 weeks, so the date changes every month. 

Thanks …looks like we’ve just been unlucky with timing then 😬

Not so much unlucky but just down to how the increase is applied.

The state pension increases on the first Monday of the tax year which for this tax year is the 10th April. However the exact date of your increase depends on your pay day. For example my pay day is a Thursday so my increase will not begin until Friday 14th April. This is because the state pension is a weekly benefit and is never paid pro rata in days. There is one exception to that and that is when you first start your pension as you will get paid from the exact date of reaching SPA. It wasn't always like that though.

Another thing that will make a difference is whether you're paid in arrears ( the majority are now) or in advance. Many older pensioners are paid one week in advance and their payment day is a Monday. My Dad was paid his normal week in advance payment yesterday because of the Bank Holiday on Monday. His does include the increase.