{"id":7485,"date":"2021-09-22T11:38:15","date_gmt":"2021-09-22T11:38:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mouthymoney.co.uk\/?p=7485"},"modified":"2025-03-03T10:27:30","modified_gmt":"2025-03-03T10:27:30","slug":"over-134000-pensioners-owed-thousands-of-pounds-in-state-pension-entitlement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mouthymoney.co.uk\/pensions\/over-134000-pensioners-owed-thousands-of-pounds-in-state-pension-entitlement\/","title":{"rendered":"Thousands of retirees caught out: how to find out if you\u2019ve missed \u00a38,900 in state pension"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Hundreds of thousands of retirees have been underpaid in their state pensions, with women pensioners likely to be most affected.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The National Audit Office has found the UK government underpaid 134,000 pensioners over \u00a31 billion in state pension entitlement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

David Linden MP, SNP Work and Pensions spokesperson, comments: \u201cThis billion-pound blunder is just the latest in a long line of failings from the DWP, with pensioners being left to pick up the pieces of a broken system.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What does this mean for your state pension?<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Each pensioner affected by this mistake missed out on an average of \u00a38,900, and women were likely to be most affected.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Helen Morrissey, senior pensions and retirement analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown explains: \u201cA combination of manual error and a complex system means thousands of women have missed out on payments that could have made a real difference to their standard of living in retirement.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some 3.8 million women born in the 1950s had their state pension age changed by the UK government to align with those of men.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMany of these women had no idea that they were even entitled to a higher pension and so did not ask about it and while the DWP has begun making repayments it is likely going to take some time before all those affected have been identified,\u201d Morrissey added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The UK has the lowest state pension in Europe. The full new state pension is \u00a3179.60 per week, but the actual amount you get depends on your National Insurance record.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

UK pensioners currently receive just 28% of the average working wage when they retire \u2013 whereas in contrast, pensioners in Luxembourg and Austria receive 90% of the average working wage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How to check your state pension<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Do you think you\u2019ve received less state pension than the government owes you? The best course of action is to check your state pension.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The amount is based on your National Insurance record when you reach state pension age, which is 66 for men and women.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are a few ways in which you can check the amount you\u2019re owed:<\/p>\n\n\n\n