State pension error - what it is and how you can check if you're owed money

A major state pension error could mean you're owed tens of thousands of pounds back from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).

How much state pension you get in later life is dependent on your National Insurance record. For example, with the new state pension, most people need 35 years of National Insurance contributions to get the full amount.

If you're out of work, you may be entitled to National Insurance credits and these essentially fill any gaps in your National Insurance record.

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But thousands are people are feared to have missed out on an old version of National Insurance credits, known as Home Responsibilities Protection (HRP).

HRP reduced the number of qualifying years you need on your National Insurance record to claim the state pension. It was replaced by National Insurance credits in 2010.

Who is affected by this error?

HRP should have been applied automatically to those claiming Child Benefit - but Child Benefit forms submitted before 2000 did not include a National Insurance number. This led to HRP not being correctly applied to National Insurance records.

It also impacted those claiming Income Support while they were caring for a person with a disability or long-term illness.

If you didn't have the correct level of HRP applied to your National Insurance record, then you may have been underpaid the state pension and are owed money back.

You may be affected if you took time off work to look after a child, or a family member with a long-term disability or illness, between 1978 and 2010. It is thought the main group of people who are affected are women in their 60s or 70s.

Latest figures from HMRC shows 370,000 women have been contacted regarding potential underpayments, with the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).

Of those who responded to the letters, HMRC identified 5,344 cases of underpayments between January 8 and September 30, 2024, totalling approximately £42million in arrears.

How much could I get back?

It all depends on how much you were underpaid by, and for how long. The latest figures from the DWP show the average payout per person is £7,859.

But for some people, the money back has been in the tens of thousands of pounds. For example, one person called Cilla wrote in to MoneySavingExpert.com to explain how to reclaimed more than £31,000 in backpay.

She said: "I've just received 15yrs' back pay from HMRC of £31,674 for underpayment of my pension. Thank you."

How do I know if I've been underpaid?

If you are not receiving the full state pension, you should first check your state pension forecast or statement. The full new state pension is worth £230.25 per week, while the old basic state pension is £176.45 per week.

If it looks like you are missing gaps, the next step is to check your National Insurance record. The Government has also created an online checker tool on GOV.UK.

You can make a claim for missing HRP by using the online service on GOV.UK, or by filling out this form and posting it back to HMRC. It is believed 43,000 people who are due money back are now deceased, but their families can claim on their behalf.