UK. DWP underpaid state pensions to the tune of £1bn
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) underpaid 134,000 pensioners in state pension to the tune of £1bn, according to new figures from the National Audit Office (NAO)
“Repeated human errors over many years” was cited as the reason for the underpayment.
Read also UK. Guy Opperman reappointed as pensions minister
The NAO said some level of error in the processing of state pension claims was almost inevitable given “the complex rules and high degree of manual review necessary” when assessing them.
Read also UK. The Pensions Regulator’s new criminal powers – how worried should companies and pension scheme trustees be?
Errors affected pensioners who first claimed state pension before April 2016, do not have a full national insurance record, and should have received certain increases in their basic state pension.
Read also UK. Dipping into pension could cost savers their benefits
The DWP has not assessed the demographics of pensioners likely to be affected, but it has estimated that 90% are likely to be women.
Individual pensioners, concerned experts and the media brought the potential errors to the attention of the DWP.
It started exploring the “potential for error” in April 2020. And confirmed there was a “significant issue” in August 2020.
Cases started getting reviewed from January 2021, in a legal entitlements and administrative practices (LEAP) exercise.
Read more @Money Marketing
248 views
