Topping up shortly before SP claim letter is due

Blue_Butterfly

I’m helping a friend who is not computer literature with claiming her State Pension. She reaches SPA during February 2024, so should receive her claim letter in the next few weeks. She had a shortfall when I checked her forecast recently. My friend phoned DWP and HMRC and has the reference number and details to pay 2 post 2016 years. She is planning to make the payment in a bank branch this week as she doesn’t do online banking.

How quickly are HMRC likely to update her NI record and SP forecast?

As the claim letter is usually sent 4 months prior to SPA, is it a good idea to delay claiming until the NI record is updated? The SP will be entirely based on her own NI record with no inheritance.

molerat

Hopefully if paying this week the NI record will be updated by mid to end of December. If not updated by 3rd week in December then give them a call and they should be able to update manually. Probably best to delay claiming until record updated.

jem16

Blue_Butterfly said:

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As the claim letter is usually sent 4 months prior to SPA, is it a good idea to delay claiming until the NI record is updated? The SP will be entirely based on her own NI record with no inheritance.

Personally I wouldn’t delay claiming until the NI Record is updated as it could mean payment is late. 

xylophone

https://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/pensions/article-12365813/I-spent-2k-bigger-state-pension-got-six-months-later-Nothing.html

Blue_Butterfly

An update
My friend did her top up on the 28th September, and I checked her forecast with her today. 21-22 was now full and added to her SP forecast, but the other year she paid for 20-21 had only 50 weeks NI added with a further £30.60 needed to complete the year! She had paid the correct amount with the 18 digit reference number. Do you think there was a clerical error by HMRC? I've advised her to phone HMRC to sort it out, and she is prepared to pay the £30.60 rather than lose the extra pension. 

The pension claim letter hasn't arrived yet, but she is still more than 3 months from SPA.

molerat

Blue_Butterfly said:

An update
My friend did her top up on the 28th September, and I checked her forecast with her today. 21-22 was now full and added to her SP forecast, but the other year she paid for 20-21 had only 50 weeks NI added with a further £30.60 needed to complete the year! She had paid the correct amount with the 18 digit reference number. Do you think there was a clerical error by HMRC? I've advised her to phone HMRC to sort it out, and she is prepared to pay the £30.60 rather than lose the extra pension. 

The pension claim letter hasn't arrived yet, but she is still more than 3 months from SPA.

SIL had exactly the same happen for a year.  Phoned them, they checked what had been paid and updated it whilst on the phone.  These payments are manually added so mistakes happen.

Blue_Butterfly

molerat said:

SIL had exactly the same happen for a year.  Phoned them, they checked what had been paid and updated it whilst on the phone.  These payments are manually added so mistakes happen.

Thank you, I'm reassured that as the payment has definitely reached my friends NI account it should be relatively simple to correct the missing 2 weeks.