Pension credit suspension

jaycie

My husband had his pension credit suspended without us being informed. We found out when it was not paid into the bank. We found out that it was because I had not claimed my pension at the end of may because as I don't think I will have anything. 
We have told the council because of our housing benefit and council tax. I understand that these things can be backdated, but what happens if it takes longer for the pensions service to sort my pension and also for us to reapply for pension credit?
Any advice greatly appreciated.  

NedS

You should not need to reapply for Pension Credit if the award has been suspended. It should just continue as and when you become eligible again.

Are you /have you now applied for your State Pension? Presumably they require you to at least apply, even if you are then told you are not entitled to any State Pension.

Why do you think you are not entitled to a State Pension. Had you previously checked online how much you were entitled to? How do you plan to support yourself in retirement without a pension?

jaycie

Thank you NedS for your reply.
Yes I have claimed my pension, I had been a housewife and working part-time most of my working life until I became ill. That is why I am presuming I won't have a state pension.

HillStreetBlues

Have you checked your NI record? https://www.gov.uk/check-national-insurance-record

Keep_pedalling

jaycie said:

Thank you NedS for your reply.
Yes I have claimed my pension, I had been a housewife and working part-time most of my working life until I became ill. That is why I am presuming I won't have a state pension.

Never assume. It seems the DWP think you should be claiming it so you almost certainly are entitled to.

cheekyweegit

If you have children and were claiming child benefit you might have contributions towards your state pension through this, plus even working part time might have given you some more so you might be surprised.  Maybe not a full state pension but something.

When in receipt of Pension Credit when a customer / partner reaches their State Pension Age, the claim gets automatically suspended as it recognises a possibly claim for State Pension by the customer /a partner and this is to stop any potential over payment of Pension Credit.

You need to make a claim even if it's for a nil decision on your State Pension and once a decision has been received get back in touch with Pension Credit and let them know and your State Pension will be deducted £ for £ from your current award (before the suspension).  If your State Pension is greater than your previous Pension Credit Award your claim will be closed down as you will no longer be entitled to it due to now having excess income.

If you are entitled to some at a potential reduced rate they will do a recovery from your State Pension to claw back any Pension Credit which has been over paid which should not have been paid if your State Pension had been taken into account from the correct date, they will then pay you the difference and adjust the Pension Credit and issue any arrears due.

If you or your partner are getting a disability benefit, make sure you check your eligibility for the Extra Amount for Severe Disability Premium and potential claims for underlying carers allowance and associated premiums on Pension Credit for this.  

These both make a huge difference as to the amount of income you can have and still get Pension Credit.

Furthermore, even if your Pension Credit does stop, you might still be entitled to things like help with rent / council tax / dental costs / glasses etc, you will just need to apply for them directly.

Housing / council tax benefit via your local authority (if you have savings over £16k I don't think you will get help but if you still qualify for Pension Credit and get the Guaranteed Credit element even 1p you will get help with rent & council tax and nhs costs as well as other things).

Help with NHS costs you can phone 0300 330 1343and get an application sent to you for both you and partner (need a form each) and if you qualify you will get an exemption certificate.

You can also apply directly via this link Apply online for help with NHS costs - Apply online for help with NHS costs - NHSBSA

jaycie

Thank you Cheekyweegit for your reply. We have never had children. We have very little savings. Somone told us that once my pension has been sorted out the pension credit will automatically be reinstated, is this correct or do we have to claim it again? We do realise that it may well not be the same amount if I do happen to receive any pension.
I became a pensioner 31st may. I'm so worried that this won't be sorted soon, I cancelled the dentist appointment that I had on the same day that we hadn't had the pension credit paid in as I was frightened to go.

Thank you

cheekyweegit

How much is your weekly State Pension now (you don't need to give figures), is it more of less than what you were getting in Pension Credit before, this will give you a good idea if you are still entitled to Pension Credit.  

If more than you were getting for your Pension Credit award, sounds like you will no longer be entitled to Pension Credit unless your circumstances change and you are entitled to any premiums.

If less than what you were getting before, good news then you should still get Pension Credit albeit at a reduced amount.

As for having to claim again, if your Pension Credit is just going to be reduced, there will be no need for a new claim, it should just be adjusted accordingly.

If you know your State Pension award you can phone up Pension Credit and give them the details and tell them you are in financial hardship and can the award be sorted out and arrears issued which are due to you. 

Pension Credit changes contact number is 0800 731 0469,  Monday to Friday I'm not sure of the options though and the line is open until 8am-3pm, so as long as you are in the queue by 3pm your call will be answered.  It can take a while for the call to be answered, so drink of juice to hand and a phone with a loud speaker whilst waiting is definitely beneficial.

Don't forget, that if you are entitled to Pension Credit Guaranteed Credit, you will be able to claim for your dental costs, help with glasses, get access possibly to social tariffs (cheaper rates for your utility bills - need to contact your suppliers about these directly), warm home discount also a possibility which is £150 paid directly to your electricity bill to name a few things.

Might be worthwhile sticking your new income into the Pension Credit calculator which will give you and idea and ultimately peace of mind if you are going to be due anything, all you need is 1p to get access to lots of things.

Pension Credit calculator - GOV.UK
  

QrizB

cheekyweegit said:

How much is your weekly State Pension now

I don't think OP knows? They've only said that they've claimed it but aren't expecting to get one, which makes me think they didn't get a forecast before they reached SPA and haven't yet had a letter from DWP to say what they're entitled to?

cheekyweegit

QrizB said:

cheekyweegit said:

How much is your weekly State Pension now

I don't think OP knows? They've only said that they've claimed it but aren't expecting to get one, which makes me think they didn't get a forecast before they reached SPA and have had a letter from DWP to say what they're entitled to?

I noticed in one of the posts that they had claimed it, but you are right on reading back doesn't look like they have had details of their award though.

But another poster above has put a link up for the check your state pension, if the OP can register for this it would give them an idea of what their State Pension will be.

Another way of getting credits is if you have looked after a child, you might be able to get the child benefit credits transferred to you if the parent also works, or through Carer's Credit: Eligibility - GOV.UK if you have been looking after an adult (don't need to be getting any form of carers allowance for this, but the disabled person does need to be getting a qualifying Disability Benefit.  See the link for more info.

I'm not sure what the time scales are for new claims for SP/PC just now, but hopefully not too long before they get a decision and can then make the call to follow up on the Pension Credit Award.

jaycie

Thank you Cheekyweegit and QrizB,
I did not put a claim in for my pension until 2 weeks ago when we discovered my husbands pension credit had not been paid into the bank. I wasn't going to claim it because I believe I won't be entitled to any. My husband rang pension credit and they said it was suspended because I had failed to claim my pension.