DWP again

I think you should probably contact them (on behalf of your husband)...

Re yourself, have you got any old letters from them if you want to write on your own behalf?
State Pension or other working age, disability or ill health benefits?
(I don't know if you are working age or not, sorry).
What do you want to know?

I got a pension statement from them.
Not sure if I've had anything at all recently.

The only letter I have is when I first got my state pension. That was 3 years ago. Nothing since.
I did phone but only got told it was changed of circumstances. It wasn't
I might add that the original application got mislaid and it took many phone calls to get application form.
At the time I got told couldn't apply on line as computer wouldn't generate another code.
The on line site wouldn't verify me. Assuming it was as didn't have credit card and so couldn't find me. Been nightmare

If you are both under 80 and not receiving Pension Credit then you should be receiving £100 each - £200 for the household.

If a household has one member who receives Pension Credit, that person will get the whole Winter Fuel Payment. The payment will not be split between members of the household.

If you think the payment is split wrongly then write to:

The Pension Service 

Post Handling Site A 

Wolverhampton 
WV98 1AF

Include both your names and National Insurance Numbers.

It is important to get the split right in case anyone in the household has income over £35,000 ,in which ase they will have to pay their share back.

PaynesGrey and dollydaydream68 - I am confused, isn't this about letters from the Department for Work & Pensions?

It's both, I don't get any letters and have received no notification about WFA.

My husband's letter stated he's getting £200 as no one else is getting the benefit.

Obviously wrong, I don't think I exist
I phoned previously about this and the call handler confirmed my details. I sent my marriage certificate when I applied.
Was told that any changes would have to contact change of circumstances

There are no changes. I have the original letter with confirmation of my details.
I have had no other communication from DWP.

The WFA is per household not per person although it can be split into a hundred per person if necessary. Are you questioning the payment or the fact that you receive no communication? My letter said it will be paid to me as although hubby retired he doesn't receive state pension.

I'm questioning both. As letter states he lives alone, I'll get it too.

You are obviously distressed about this. I looked it up and there is only one letter sent per household. I don’t think they are deliberately ignoring you.

Thanks for all your kind replies. You're right J52 it is stressing me out. Mainly because it was so stressful to apply for the pension in the first place and when I've phoned previously about lack of post etc I got nowhere.
I'm scared that they'll mess up my pension that took such hassle to get x

Dont be put off by being told to contact the Change section. Even if your circmstances haven’t changed it means a change is needed in DWP’s systems.

As I said above, if you are married and your husband is not in receipt of Pension Credit then you should be getting £100 each.

If neither of you have an individual income of over £35,000 then it’s not going to make any difference overall but it’s still worth writing to the address I gave above to get this straight for 2026/27.

Your pension is based on your contribution record. Why would it change?

Flippin2

The WFA is per household not per person although it can be split into a hundred per person if necessary. Are you questioning the payment or the fact that you receive no communication? My letter said it will be paid to me as although hubby retired he doesn't receive state pension.

Is this right? I thought it was per person, and that if either of them have an income of more than £35k they will pay it back in tax. If the other person has less than £35k they will get £100 regardless of their spouse's income.

The sums rise to £150 each for those over 80.

It is an amount per household. £200 per household if nobody in the household is 80 or over; £300 if somebody in the household is 80 or over.

However it is split and paid per person.

If both are pensioners but neither is 80 or over, they are paid £100 each.

If both are pensioners but one is under 80 and the other is 80 or over, the younger is paid £100 and the older £200.

If they are both 80 or over, they are paid £150 each.

This may be paid differently if there is a claim for certain benefits (other than the SP). See:

www.gov.uk/winter-fuel-payment/how-much-youll-get

The clawback is based on individual incomes over £35,000.

So a single householder receiving £200 (or £300) with an income over £35,000 will have to pay back £200 (or £300).

In a two person household where each receives say £100 but only one has an income of £35,000, only they have to pay back their £100.

This is another example of where means testing is unfair. On the basis that it costs the same to heat a home whether one or two people live in it, a couple could have a much higher joint income than the single person but not have to pay anything back.

I don’t see how what you describe as ‘per household’ can be described as such if each individual is treated separately.

Means-testing is always unfair IMO. I do take the point about heating a home costing the same for one person as two, but I also think that as we pay in as individuals we should get out on the same basis IYSWIM?

It is impossible to make means-testing fair, as it is based on denying money to those who have saved or earned it, and giving it to those who haven’t. There will be times when that is for good reason, but the premise of it is anything but fair.

Because there is a maximum sum that can be paid per household dependent on the oldest occupant. Say you had a couple aged 90 living with their 70 year old son. Not unfeasible. Nobody receives any benefits other than SP. They would each receive £100. If the son wasn't there, the couple would receive £150 each.

WFP is not deemed a contributory benefit so the argument of paying in and getting out can't be made. If it was deemed contributory, it would be paid out of the National Insurance Fund which is currently awash with funds.

WFP was introduced by Gordon Brown in his 1997 pre-budget statement as a two year temporary measure to help pensioners. It was paid £20 per household or £50 for households in receipt of Income Support (the forerunner to Pension Credit).

For this winter and next, every pensioner household will receive £20 extra to help with their bills and every pensioner household on income support—nearly 2 million households—will receive £50 extra. The cost will be met from reallocating the savings on our contribution to the European budget.

hansard.parliament.uk/commons/1997-11-25/debates/e9c29db6-c1fb-4840-b5d5-1760462a5855/Pre-BudgetStatement

Meantime, Harriet Harman was charged with increasing the uptake of Income Support, same as the withdrawal of universal WFP last year was meant to do for Pension Credit- with limited success.

It didn't work in 1997/98 either so the WFP became a universal annual payment, increased to £100 per household in 1999 and £200 in 2000. The extra £100 for older pensioners was introduced from 2003. In real terms it's worth a lot less now than it was.

A briefing paper was published on in November 2019 (just before the 2019 GE) setting out the history, the many debates over poor targeting and options for reform (and the problems of each option). See right at the end of the paper. Having tried option one, the government is now doing option 3.

researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/SN06019/SN06019.pdf

Remember that Theresa May's election manifesto did include a proposal to means test WFP.

The options from the 2019 paper were never acted on by the Johnson government not least because the government was focused on Brexit, the pandemic and then the cost of living crisis with rocketing fuel prices. Pensioners were given extra help with a £300 per household boost to WFP for 2022 and 2023 to £500 and £600.

For all the furore last year over WFP, the new government was doing what has been proposed by the old government seven and five years earlier. People can make of it what they will but it wasn't a new idea. Poor targetting had been discussed for many years before that.

Anyway, I have gone off on a tangent but the main points - it has always been a per household payment and a non-contributory benefit.

I know it's perfect household. The point is my husband letter states that there's only him in the house. As I said I never get any letters regarding increases etc.

I live on my own and had a letter last week saying I would be getting £200 winter fuel allowance…

dollydaydream68

I know it's perfect household. The point is my husband letter states that there's only him in the house. As I said I never get any letters regarding increases etc.

Then the DWP isn’t linking you together for some reason. Who knows how their systems deal with that? Maybe it’s some mis-keying of a name, address or a NINO or a check box not ticked that says you should be sharing the payment.

Our state pension is calculated based on our own contributions until such time as one spouse dies. After that, the widow(er) may have some rights to inherit some of their late spouse’s pension - although that right is much reduced for people reaching SP age after 5 April 2016.

You need to communicate with the Change department at the DWP by phone or letter.

Great informative posts PaynesGrey.

Thanks for all the replies. It's really kind.
I will phone.
I guess it's just that I'm really anxious about phoning. When I was applying for my pension as letters got lost etc I had to make many phone calls, often achieved nothing and each person told me something different.

Thanks, PaynesGrey. That makes sense.

I wrote to them to say there was another person in the household entiled to the winter fuel allowance.

I would suggest that you write a letter keeping good copy. Send it recorded delivery, and someone will have to sign for it. Then if you do not hear back from them , in a reasonable level time. You could ring them. But have your letter to hand , and your confirmation that they have signed for it and cannot make any excuses as to why they have not been in touch directly with you. I would also photo copy the receipt you have in case anything gets lost

They then can have bno excuse for doing nothing. I would also keep a note of dates letters and emails were sent. The recorded delivery should show them that you mean business. If nothing happens then I think you should either send a resume of the lengths you have had to go. To your local paper. And or your mp
If you do it now they cannot plead too much mail etc .

Sorry to disagree with you but sending something to the Pension Service Recorded Delivery is a waste of money. It will only be signed for at the original arrival point. After than it could easily get lost on what is a huge system.

This isn't a huge matter. OP's husband has been awarded the £200 that the household should have. If she writes to the address given above, there is plenty of time to get this sorted out before next year.

Dear DollyDD,
Am mystified. You are receiving your pension ok?
And you have a national insurance no?.
I think perhaps you should go to the citizens advice bureau and ask them to research this.
They may have you at another address.
Or write to them yourself.
Or if you are tech savvy look on their website.
This needs clarification.
They should have you at your address.