The rising cost of living means households are still worse off than they were in 2021, but one pensioner is sharing how he boosted his finances in a bid to help others
A pensioner, who is now more than £2,000 a year better off after a charity helped him claim benefits he was entitled to from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), is urging others to ask for help.
Michael Eastick, 73, from Manchester was suffering from anxiety and depression when he went to Money Wellness to see if there were any DWP benefits he was missing out on.
And he says not only has the money made a massive difference to his finances, it’s helped him get back to where he was and start enjoying life again.
“I was really out of sorts last year, suffering from anxiety and worry about filling out the form – it was an obstacle. It was a really bad time for me – I was anxious and depressed.”
In the UK, an estimated 8.4 million people could be missing out on an average of £2,700 per year in unclaimed benefits and financial support.
After checking his individual circumstances, the charity discovered he was not claiming Housing Benefit and was missing out on more than £2,000 in payments every year.
“The housing benefit made a huge difference and the extra money has relieved my depression and I feel much better,” Michael said. “ I can get on with things better and I’m back doing things I enjoy”
As a pensioner suffering with his mental health, Michael felt how the complicated forms were a huge obstacle that he couldn’t overcome on his own.
“In the normal run of things, it would be something I would have been able to do years ago, but my mental health made it impossible. It made me feel anxious but Money Wellness and Age UK gave me the confidence and support to complete the online forms.”
Money Wellness is tasked by the government’s Money and Pensions Service to provide free money-saving, debt and benefits advice.
Advisors helped more than 300,000 people last year with energy grants and benefit applications and in Michael’s case discovered he was entitled to £192 a month in Housing Benefit.
Around 1.8 million people are topping up their household income with some form of benefit, but with £32bn going unclaimed in financial support last year, there are many, many more missing out on a boost that could help with rising living costs.
“We completed over 20,000 benefit assessments last year and achieved a £45million uplift,” a spokesperson for the charity said.”On average last month, people we assessed received an additional £250 or £3,000 a year.
“We can help people over the phone or online – no matter where they are in the country – and have a free online benefit checker at www.moneywellness.com.
