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It’s estimated that about a third of people who are eligible for pension credit don’t claim it because they’re not aware they can.
Please share this with your family, friends and loved ones, so more people find out about help they may be entitled to.
Pension credit is a means-tested weekly benefit to boost your income based on how much money you have coming in – but an estimated £4m is unclaimed by people living in North Somerset.
If you’ve reached state pension age, you may be eligible for it.
It’s separate to your pension and made up of two parts. Both guarantee credit and savings credit, so it’s based on your income and your savings. Some people are eligible to both parts, while others are eligible for just one.
You can get pension credit even if you have other income, savings or your own home.
To be eligible you must be:
- above state pension age, and
- have an income of less than £218.15 a week or less than £332.95 as a joint weekly income with your partner. Your savings will also be taken into account.
The easiest and quickest way to check if you or a loved one are eligible for pension credit is to use the online government checker.
With changes announced to the winter fuel payment, it’s more important than ever to check whether you qualify. The Energy Price Cap is also likely to increase this October and stay high across the winter months, so it’s more important to claim if you are entitled.
Citizens Advice North Somerset can help you to carry out a benefit check, so get in touch with them if you’re over the age of 66. Book an appointment online or drop into the Citizens Advice shop in The Sovereign in Weston-super-Mare.
Citizen’s Advice also has lots of tips on affording energy bills this winter on its website.