Thousands missing out on pension credit as claims fall

Thousands of pensioners could be missing out on support worth up to £4,000 a year.

Pension credit provides people on low incomes who are over state pension age with extra money to help with living costs.

And it also opens the door to other benefits, including:

• help with rent
• a council tax reduction
• fuel bill support
• a free TV licence if you’re over 75

But new government figures show there’s been a big fall in the number of pension credit claims.

Pension credit applications down by more than a third

According to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), 209,735 pension credit applications were received between 24 February 2025 and 22 February 2026.

That’s 36% down on the previous year - a drop of 117,595 applications.

Meanwhile, 242,440 claims were processed - a drop of 25% year-on-year.

And the number of claims awarded fell by 13% to 147,150.

Could changes to winter fuel allowance be behind the drop?

In July 2024, the government announced that winter fuel payments would be limited to people receiving pension credit or other means-tested benefits.

And following the announcement, the DWP launched a campaign to raise awareness of pension credit, which led to a surge in the number of applications.

But the government has since revised its policy so that everyone over the state pension age with an annual income of £35,000 or less will get a winter fuel payment.

This might partly explain why the urgency to claim pension credit has disappeared and the number of claims has dropped to where it was before July 2024.

But it also suggests that many people who could be eligible for financial support aren’t applying for it.

Don’t miss out 

You can make a claim for pension credit on the government website.

And if you’re not sure if you qualify, give us a ring and we’ll check for you. 

We can also help you find out if you're receiving all the benefits you're entitled to, or you can use our free benefits calculator to see if you might be eligible for additional support.

Don’t assume you won’t qualify. 

Even if you own your home or have some savings, you could still be eligible.