Demand increases for new State Pension statements
The number of people accessing their new State Pension statement has increased by almost 40% in the last 6 months to approximately 400,000.
This is an increase on the previous year when there were 400,000 requests in total.
Pensions Minister Baroness Ros Altmann said:
It is encouraging to see that more and more people are taking an interest in their State Pension.
Requesting a pension statement is easy and I encourage everyone to do so – it is a valuable tool for helping you plan a secure retirement.
Once you understand how much State Pension you might receive, you will be better able to plan your later life income.
Through our pensions reforms we want to create a better culture of saving which is why we have introduced automatic enrolment that will help people supplement their State Pension and we are providing more opportunities to save for retirement.
Anyone over the age of 18 can access information about their State Pension by using the new online Check your State Pension service. This service provides a personalised estimate of what someone may receive when they reach State Pension age based on their National Insurance contributions records. It can also highlight any gaps in National Insurance contributions and whether these can be filled with voluntary contributions.
Since the service went live on 12 February 2016 there have been 300,000 unique visits. Those not able to use the online service can request a State Pension statement from DWP.
State Pension statements will not be sent automatically. Anyone aged 50 or over can use the online service or request a paper statement. The under 50s can obtain the statement digitally. You can find out how to request a statement at www.gov.uk/check-state-pension. Written statements will normally be sent within 10 days.
If your current State Pension estimate is less than the full amount of new State Pension (£155.65 in 2016/17), you may be able to increase this amount by adding qualifying years.
Find out more at: www.gov.uk/new-state-pension/how-its-calculated.
Statistics
Read the official statistics on State Pension statements issued: Apr 2014 to Apr 2016.
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