State and other benefits

There are a number of State benefits (see below) to which you, as a pensioner, may be entitled. This page only gives a brief summary of some of the pension-related benefits.

You will usually be sent an invitation to claim State benefits when you are four months away from State Pension Age.

If you don't receive an invitation to claim, and you are within four months of State Pension Age, you can call 0800 731 7898 (between 8 am and 8 pm) and the Pensions Service (part of the Department of Work and Pensions) will send you an invitation. You can also do this online. Make sure you do this as soon as possible so that you receive your first payment on time.

If you have been retired for a while, you're probably already receiving the basic State Pension. The amount you are receiving depends on how many qualifying years you built up while you were working. (Qualifying years are the years in which you paid or were treated as paying National Insurance contributions.) In certain circumstances, you may have been credited with National Insurance contributions even if you were unable to do paid work.

You may also be getting additional State Pension. This is the earnings-related element of State Pension, paid on top of your basic State Pension. You may know this better as SERPS (the State-Earning Related Pension Scheme). SERPS was replaced by the State Second Pension (S2P) from April 2002. The amount you receive from this pension is based on your record of National Insurance contributions and your level of earnings when you were an employee.

Some typical benefits to which pensioners may be entitled:

  • Pension and Pension Credit - State pension, State second pension, SERPS and Pension Credit.
  • Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit - local authority benefits that assist those on a low income.
  • Special benefits depending on personal and other circumstances - such as Winter Fuel Payments, Community Care Grants, Budgeting loans, Crisis loans, Funeral and Bereavement Payments.
  • Disability related benefits - Attendance Allowance, Carer's Allowance, War Disablement Pensions, War Widows' or Widowers' Pensions.

Please note that this is not a complete list. You can find out more about these benefits here.