“With the changes to the winter fuel payment, we welcome the government’s efforts to increase the uptake of pension credit,” Matt Copeland, head of policy at charity National Energy Action, told Big Issue. “It’s vital that as many eligible households as possible get access to pension credit, which then unlocks access to the winter fuel payment.
“However, the government must also ensure that application process is smooth and quick. Delays like this will be costly to vulnerable households, especially as we enter the coldest part of the year, and will undermine the government’s own message to apply for pension credit.”
One welfare rights adviser told Big Issue that delays of three months in processing pension credit applications are normal, with many cases going on much longer. Complex pension credit claims – those involving EU nationals, couples where one partner does not have recourse to public funds, or those with different types of capital – can be prone to delays.
In 2022 the previous government encouraged pension credit take-up as a response to the cost of living crisis, but failed to assign enough staff to deal with the surge in demand, leading to huge delays until the DWP allocated staff to try and clear the backlog. The number of full-time equivalent DWP staffers working on pension credit rose from 190 in January 2022 to 400 in October 2022.
The DWP’s FOI response shows that in August 2024 that figure had only risen marginally to 410 full-time equivalent members of staff, although it is not clear if that figure has risen since. Stakeholders have been told by the DWP that it takes two to three months for new staff to be fully up and running.
A government spokesperson said: “We are committed to supporting pensioners – with millions set to see their state pension rise by up to £1,700 this parliament through our commitment to the triple lock.
“Anyone who makes a successful claim for pension credit and meets the winter fuel payment eligibility criteria will receive their payment, and we are deploying additional staff to process the expected increase in claims.
“Over a million pensioners will still receive the winter fuel payment, and our drive to boost pension credit take up has already seen a 152% increase in claims. Many others will also benefit from the £150 warm home discount to help with energy bills over winter while our extension of the household support fund will help with the cost of food, heating and bills.”
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