THE Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has issued a major update on the thousands of women affected by a state pension blunder.

Fresh figures show that almost 120,000 women have been short-changed on their state pensions and are owed up to £11,905 each.

1

The DWP has been undertaking a correction exercise since 2021 to fix these errors.

This blunder affected married women whose husbands reached pension age before 2008, as well as widows and women over 80.

They were entitled to an ‘enhanced pension‘, which could have boosted their payments by up to 60%, but they didn’t receive it at the time.

Your husband must have turned 65 before March 17, 2008 to qualify.

The DWP has now completed payouts to married women and those over 80.

They’ve paid £250.6million to 45,907 married women, with an average payout of £5,591.

Women over 80 have received £68.2million across 33,437 cases, with an average of £2,202 each.

As of November 2024, the DWP is still issuing payments to widows affected by the issue.

So far, £417.2million has been paid to 39,706 widows, with an average of £11,905 each.

It means that in total, 119,050 women are owed up to £11,905 each from the DWP.

The DWP added that it expects to issue payments owed to all remaining widows by the end of 2024.

However, this isn’t the only type of state pension underpayment blunder affecting retirees.

Sarah Coles, head of personal finance at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: “The number of people who have been underpaid their state pension is shocking. 

“And this isn’t the final number either, because the DWP hasn’t finished uncovering the full extent of underpayments yet.

“The government is still carrying out a review, going through everyone who might have been underpaid, so you don’t need to apply to be part of this process.”

The DWP will contact you directly if you’re affected by the error.

You must respond to any communications to ensure you receive a repayment.

UPDATE ON OTHER ERRORS

The government has also shared progress on correcting Home Responsibilities Protection (HRP) errors.

From January 8 to September 30, 2024, the DWP identified 5,344 cases of underpayment, amounting to around £42million in total arrears.

This issue affected individuals who took time off work to care for children or someone with a disability between 1978 and 2010.

The problem arose because child benefit claim forms submitted before 2000 often didn’t include a National Insurance number, meaning the relevant HRP information wasn’t transferred from the child benefit system to the National Insurance system.

HRP would have added credits that counted towards their state pension, much like National Insurance credits work today.

As a result, thousands missed out on state pension benefits worth an average of £5,000.

If you have missing payments, you can complete a CF411 form to add the credits to your record.

You might also be eligible to apply if any of the following situations apply to you:

• You were caring for a child while your partner claimed child benefit instead of you.
• You were receiving 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.

If your partner claimed child benefit, you might be able to transfer the HRP credits, but they will need to agree.

For example, if you were a stay-at-home parent and your working partner claimed the child benefit, they can transfer the credits to you.

Your payments will be recalculated if you have missing HRP credits and have already reached state pension age.

Any missing money will be backdated and paid to you as a lump sum.

An expert recently revealed that more pensioners could be owed cash but have been unable to claim.

TRACK DOWN ERRORS

LCP has developed an online tool to help people understand what state pension they are entitled to inherit on top of their own state pension at go.lcp.com/inheritingstatepension.

A tool previously launched by the company to help married women check for underpayments had over one million visits.

The DWP also has a tool to help those receiving the new state pension assess their eligibility for inherited state pension amounts at gov.uk/state-pension-through-partner.

There is also a guide on inheriting or increasing a state pension at gov.uk/new-state-pension/inheriting-or-increasing-state-pension-from-a-spouse-or-civil-partner.

A DWP spokesperson said: “We want to ensure pensioners receive all the support to which they are entitled and have a tool to help them understand what state pension they can inherit.

“Delays can occur to a customer state pension award when not all the information we need is provided.

“In these cases, we will make a state pension award based on the customer’s own national insurance record until we have the required information.

“Once we have the necessary documentation, we will then revise the customer’s claim as soon as possible.”

The central insurance watchdog of India, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI), recently stepped up its efforts to bring more people under health insurance. With the goal of “insurance for all” by 2047, the IRDAI’s latest norms hint at a more customer-centric approach, adding more clarity and inclusivity to the mix.

From the start of the financial year in April 2024, IRDAI made some very crucial changes in rules governing health insurance, including the slashing of cancellation fees on certain plans. These changes came via various notifications from the regulator.

While the rules came into effect earlier this year, the regulator gave insurance firms a transition time till the end of September to fully comply with the new rules that were released in March and May this year. This also included existing policies in force. So, if you are a health insurance policyholder, it would be beneficial to note the latest update to the rules.

1. Health insurance gets a no-claim bonus!

If you drive an automobile, you would be familiar with the concept of a no-claim bonus in vehicle insurance. According to the new changes to the rules, there are two ways in which the insurance companies can provide you with a bonus, as long as you haven’t filed any claims for the year.

They can offer the customer a choice for either a discounted premium for the upcoming year or an increase in the overall sum insured without changing the premium.

2. Cancelling a health insurance policy gives you a better refund

If you are not happy with the current health insurance policy and want to cancel it, it is now easier than ever. Yes, this applies even if you have made a claim. According to the new regulations, if a customer provides the insurance company with a written notice of seven days, you will get a refund in accordance with the time remaining in the policy. For instance, if you paid Rs 50,000 for a policy and decided to cancel it after six months have passed, you will get half of it—Rs 25,000—as a refund, provided you haven’t made any claims. IRDAI has also slashed the cancellation fees.

ALSO READ | Who is Rishit Jhunjhunwala, the new CEO of Truecaller?

3. Higher scrutiny on claims but less paperwork for the customer

The IRDAI has instructed the insurance companies to collect the relevant documents for each claim from the hospitals. On top of that, each claim will now go through a “claims review committee” by the insurance company for approval. If the claim is denied either fully or partially, the committee needs to give proper reasons and point to the exact documentation.

4. No more ‘missing’ important policy details and information

All insurers need to display prominent information regarding health insurance. For instance, they need to display which hospitals and healthcare providers can provide cashless claim settlements, which ones are included in the network, and a clear set of details needed from the customer for reimbursement if claimed in hospitals outside the network, along with steps to follow for cashless claim settlements and reimbursements. They also need to provide clear information on the time period needed to service the claims and process the reimbursements.

5. Insurers will be slapped with fines if they go against the ombudsman

The IRDAI increased the fines on insurance companies if they delay following an order from the ombudsman. If the insurer does not follow the order within 30 days, they also need to pay a penal interest in accordance with the ‘Protection of policyholders’ regulations published in the Gazette.

Most insurance companies have already updated their websites, as these rules have come into full effect since October began.

Firms seeking to operate commercial pensions dashboards services (PDS) have no timescale when this will happen despite the Financial Conduct Authority publishing rules they must follow when designing and operating them.

FCA set out rules for pensions dashboards service firms in a policy statement published yesterday (7 Nov.)

They include expectations that firms will act “fairly, honestly and professionally in consumers’ best interests and deliver good consumer outcomes consistent with the Consumer Duty”.

And that the service firms offer “must be fit for purpose and help consumers make effective choices and act in their own interests”.

The FCA stressed that it wants PDS to be platforms where consumers can “confidently and positively engage with their pensions and be safely supported in retirement planning.”

It added that the rules, which were considered following consultations with stakeholders, are “proportionate” for the first iteration of commercial pensions dashboards.

However, FCA failed to give a timescale when firms will be able to operate pensions dashboards services.

Rachel Vahey, head of public policy at AJ Bell, said the lack of timescale is a “huge let down for customers”.

She said: “This statement is helpful but leaves the pensions industry with only a set of rules and no definitive timescale for when commercial dashboards will become a reality. Setting a clear date for commercial dashboards would allow providers to start planning in earnest. The development of dashboards has already been a bumpy ride with numerous stops and starts, and changes in who is responsible for getting it over the starting line.”

Earlier this year, the government changed the law to bring the new activity of operating a pension dashboard service within the FCA’s regulatory remit.

This legislative change means that a firm wishing to operate a PDS must become FCA authorised, get permission to undertake the new regulated activity and meet its requirements for firms undertaking this activity.

Last month Emma Reynolds, the pensions minister, confirmed that initially people will only be able to access their information by going through the Pensions Dashboard run by the government’s Money and Pension Service (MaPS).

Stay informed with free updates

Simply sign up to the Chinese economy myFT Digest — delivered directly to your inbox.

China has announced a Rmb10tn ($1.4tn) fiscal package to help shore up its faltering economy, as it braces for increased trade tensions with the US under Donald Trump.

Beijing has authorised China’s heavily indebted local governments to issue Rmb6tn in new bonds over three years and reallocate a further Rmb4tn in previously planned bonds over five years to restructure their finances, officials announced at a press conference on Friday presided over by finance minister Lan Fo’an.

Officials did not announce additional measures to directly stimulate domestic demand, potentially disappointing markets that had been hoping the package would also help consumers. But they added that they were “studying” extra measures to recapitalise big banks, buy unfinished properties and strengthen consumption.

China’s renminbi weakened sharply against the US dollar immediately after the announcement, with the onshore yuan falling as much as 0.4 per cent to less than Rmb7.17 to the dollar.

The country’s central bank on Thursday set its daily fix for the currency at its lowest level since last November, at Rmb7.166, as the dollar surged following Donald Trump’s victory in the US presidential election.

The debt relief measures, which follow the announcement of a large monetary stimulus in September, had been expected even before Trump’s victory, following a campaign in which he threatened to levy a 60 per cent tariff on Chinese goods.

But analysts say China needs to urgently deal with problems dogging its domestic economy, including a prolonged housing slump that has dented household and local government revenues, before Trump’s tariffs hit its external sector.

If fully implemented without Chinese countermeasures, the Trump tariffs could knock several percentage points off China’s GDP at a moment when the economy is highly vulnerable, analysts said.

China’s manufacturing industries and exports have been a rare bright spot for its economy this year, offsetting domestic weakness and helping Beijing come closer to hitting its growth targets.

Beijing is expected to announce additional support for the economy once Trump’s agenda becomes clearer in the coming months, analysts said.

There are signs the government’s monetary stimulus measures in September, which included interest rate cuts and support for the stock and property markets, have started to have an impact on the economy.

The government has also accelerated pre-planned bond issuances for fiscal spending that had stalled during the year.

“There have been some early signs of a pick-up in domestic demand,” Gavekal China economist Wei He wrote in a note, pointing to indicators such as the October purchasing managers’ index.

“Housing sales are improving, the official PMI is rebounding and stock prices have made handsome gains,” Wei added. 

Additional reporting by Arjun Neil Alim in Hong Kong