CashNews.co
State pensioners on the older basic state pension can actually get more money than pensioners on the new full state pension thanks to an odd loophole based on Pension Credit benefits.
Pensioner finances have been a hotly debated topic since Labour announced the scrapping of the universal £300 Winter Fuel Payment this year and swapped it to a means tested benefit.
And now it has been revealed that, thanks to a range of freebies, handouts and discounts available for pensioners, older pensioners on the basic state pension can actually get more money per month than those on the full new state pension.
Currently, pensions are split into two tiers. Older pensioners born before April 6, 1951 for a woman or April 6, 1953 for a man, can only get the basic state pension, which is £169.50 per week.
Meanwhile those born after those dates qualify for the full new state pension, assuming they have a full record of National Insurance years, which is £221.20 per week.
But, those on the old basic state pension can get Pension Credit if they have no other income, like investments, a second property or savings interest. This tops up your income to about £218 per week, which brings you within touching distance of the full new state pension.
Then, Pension Credit opens the door to a range of benefits which those on the new state pension are not eligible for.
Those on Pension Credit can get their £300 Winter Fuel Payment, of course, plus a Warm Homes Discount payment of £150, a Cold Weather Payment of £25, free dental care, free eye care, Council Tax discounts, a free TV Licence (if over 75), free grants for boiler and heating upgrades, free NHS prescriptions, Housing Benefit and even a Royal Mail discount.
Taken together, these freebies, handouts and discounts could be worth anything between £6 and £160 per week across the course of the year, depending on what you claim and how much you get on these.
Martin Lewis’ MSE, for example, clocks some of the Pension Credit benefits as being worth £19.23 per week over a year, which would still mean that those on the older state pension are actually better off, via Pension Credit, than those on the full new state pension