DWP is urging people to take action
Data from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) reveals that between 8 January 2024 and 31 March 2025, a joint State Pensions corrections exercise with HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), identified 12,379 State Pension underpayments to women due to incorrect National Insurance (NI) records.
In 2022, the DWP discovered several State Pension cases where historic periods of Home Responsibilities Protection (HRP) were missing, resulting in inaccurate State Pension payments. To date, approximately £104 million in arrears have been paid out, with an average payment of £8,377.
Retirement expert Helen Morrissey is encouraging older people to fill out the online form or get in touch with the Pension Service if they believe they’ve been affected. This comes after new research from the DWP highlighted the main reasons why those who received a letter from HMRC asking them to check their State Pension – as it could be incorrect – failed to do so.
HMRC has sent out over 370,000 letters – primarily to women – urging them to verify their State Pension payments as they may be receiving less than they’re entitled to. However, DWP research suggests that the majority of people who received a letter did not subsequently apply for HRP, reports the Daily Record.
The barriers included:
- Not understanding the letter
- Thinking the communication was a scam
- Reliance on digital methods to put in a claim
HRP was a scheme designed to safeguard parents’ and carers’ entitlement to the State Pension and was superseded by NI credits from 6 April 2010. HMRC is utilising NI records to pinpoint as many people as possible who may have been eligible for HRP between 1978 and 2010 and have no HRP on their NI record.
Post May 2000, it became compulsory to include a NI number on claims so those claiming after this point will not have been impacted.
The head of retirement analysis at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: “This research lays bare the complexities the government faces in resolving the long running issue of underpaid State Pensions. The State Pension system has become so confusing that even when the UK Government has communicated with those who may have a claim, the complexity and jargon has put many of them off. This means many thousands are getting less than they are entitled to.
“Issues identified by the government include the use of jargon. Many simply didn’t understand what was being asked of them -that mistakes made decades ago had been identified and could be rectified. Terms such as Home Responsibilities Protection haven’t been used for many years – it’s understandable that people may have little recollection as to whether they claimed it or not.
“The reliance on online forms to claim refunds was also a significant barrier, with many not feeling internet savvy enough to navigate the system without help.”
Morrissey continued: “Notably many people decided not to take action because they feared doing so might actually reduce their state pension or they were scared that they had been targeted by scammers. It’s clear the government faces an uphill battle if it is to successfully reunite those affected with their extra pension payments.
“The introduction of the New State Pension system in 2016 was meant to simplify things – and it should, but again challenges remain for these younger groups. Those who opted out of Child Benefit because of the High-Income Child Benefit Charge will not have known that by doing so they risk missing out on National Insurance credits towards their State Pension.”
The UK Government has implemented measures to address this, but Ms Morrissey cautions that it remains a potential pitfall that can “trip people up and so awareness needs to be raised on an ongoing basis”.
The retirement expert continued: “Encouraging people to check their State Pension record to see if there are any gaps is vital – if there are mistakes, then they have time to correct them.
“If the gap has occurred during a period of time when they qualified for a benefit, such as Child Benefit, then they can backdate a claim and get the gaps filled for free. There’s also the option of paying for voluntary contributions to make sure you get the most from your state pension.”
How to use the online HRP tool
You may still be eligible to apply for Home Responsibilities Protection (HRP) for full tax years (6 April to 5 April) between 1978 and 2010, if any of the following were true:
- you were claiming Child Benefit for a child under 16
- you were caring for a child with your partner who claimed Child Benefit instead of you
- you were getting Income Support because you were caring for someone who was sick or disabled
- you were caring for a sick or disabled person who was claiming certain benefits
Additionally, you can apply if, for a full tax year between 2003 and 2010, you were either:
- a foster carer
- caring for a friend or family member’s child (‘kinship carer’) in Scotland
Who automatically qualified for HRP
The guidance on GOV.UK explains that most people received HRP automatically if they were:
- getting Child Benefit in their name for a child under the age of 16 and they had given the Child Benefit Office their National Insurance number
- getting Income Support and they did not need to register for work because they were caring for someone who was sick or disabled
If your partner claimed Child Benefit instead of you
If you reached State Pension age before April 6, 2008, you cannot transfer HRP.
However, you may be able to transfer HRP from a partner you lived with if they claimed Child Benefit while you both cared for a child under 16 and they do not need the HRP.
They can transfer the HRP to you for any ‘qualifying years’ they have on their National Insurance record between April 1978 and April 2010. This will be converted into National Insurance credits.
Married women or widows
You cannot get HRP for any complete tax year if you were a married woman or a widow and:
- you had chosen to pay reduced rate Class 1 National Insurance contributions as an employee (commonly known as the small stamp)
- you had chosen not to pay Class 2 National Insurance contributions when self-employed
If you were caring for a sick or disabled person
You can only claim HRP for the years you spent caring for someone with a long-term illness or disability between April 6, 1978 and April 5, 2002.
You must have spent at least 35 hours a week caring for them and they must have been getting one of the following benefits:
- Attendance Allowance
- Disability Living Allowance at the middle or highest rate for personal care
- Constant Attendance Allowance
The benefit must have been paid for 48 weeks of each tax year on or after April 6, 1988 or every week of each tax year before April 6, 1988.
You can still apply if you are over State Pension age. You will not usually be paid any increase in State Pension that may have been due for previous years.
If you were getting Carer’s Allowance
You do not need to apply for HRP if you were getting Carer’s Allowance. You’ll automatically get National Insurance credits and would not usually have needed HRP.
If you were a foster carer or caring for a friend or family member’s child
You have to apply for HRP if, for a full tax year between 2003 and 2010, you were either:
- a foster carer
- caring for a friend or family member’s child (‘kinship carer’) in Scotland
All of the following must also be true:
- you were not getting Child Benefit
- you were not in paid work
- you did not earn enough in a tax year for it to count towards the State Pension
If you reached State Pension age on or after 6 April 2010
Any HRP you had for full tax years before April 6, 2010 was automatically converted into National Insurance credits, if you needed them, up to a maximum of 22 qualifying years. A full overview of HRP can be found on GOV.UK here.
