Are you aware that the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) carries out frequent assessments of benefit claimants? The assessments enable the DWP to identify people who may be retrospectively eligible for certain cost of living payments.

So, if you did not receive these payments during their original payment period, it is worth checking whether you are eligible for them now.

DWP's Retroactive Benefits

DWP has set up an online portal for individuals to make a claim for a missed payment. To do this, you need to enter your National Insurance number and review your bank, building society or credit union statements. Alternatively, you can look at receipts from your payment exception service before reporting a missed payment.

After completing an online form, one claimant said he was told he would receive just over £950, made up of three cost of living payments of £326, £324 and £301 which had not initially been received. In other cases, claimants reported missing amounts and were subsequently contacted to announce their forthcoming payments.

To find out whether you are entitled to retroactive cost-of-living payments, you need to understand the benefits you were due to receive and the amount you should have received.

Cost of Living Payments for 2022-2023

Had you been receiving any of the following benefits, you would have been eligible for £650, paid in two lump sums of £326 and £324:

Income-based Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA)
Income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
Income Support
Pension Credit
Child Tax Credit
Working Tax Credit

Payment of the first instalment amounted to £326 between 14 and 31 July 2022, and the second instalment amounted to £324 between 8 and 23 November 2022.

Disability benefit claimants received a further £150 between 20 September and the beginning of October 2022. To qualify, a person must be in receipt of one of the following benefits:

Attendance Allowance
Constant Attendance Allowance
Disability Living Allowance for adults
Disability Living Allowance for children
Personal Independence Payment
Adult Disability Payment (in Scotland)
Child Disability Payment (in Scotland)
Armed Forces Independence Payment
War Pension Mobility Supplement

Cost of Living Payments for 2023-2024

Looking at 2023-2024, you could be entitled to 3 Living Cost Differentials of £301, £300 and £299 if you received the following income tax credits or means-tested benefits on certain dates:

income-based Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA)
income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
Income Support
Pension Credit
Universal Credit
Child Tax Credit
Working Tax Credit

The £301 payment was deposited between 25 April and 17 May 2023, followed by £300 between 31 October and 19 November of the same year, and finally £299 between 6 and 22 February 2024.

Furthermore, you can qualify for a Disability Living Allowance of £150 if you receive any of the following benefits:

Attendance Allowance
Constant Attendance Allowance
Disability Living Allowance for adults
Disability Living Allowance for children
Personal Independence Payment
Adult Disability Payment (in Scotland)
Child Disability Payment (in Scotland)
Armed Forces Independence Payment
War Pension Mobility Supplement

Understanding Your Eligibility

Each payment had its specific qualifying dates when recipients needed to be on a relevant benefit or have a Universal Credit assessment period ending.

Those whose benefits were reduced to zero between the qualifying dates due to excess earnings, excessive savings, or other reasons, typically aren't eligible for the cost of living payments.

It should be noted that there may be people who receive means-tested benefits such as Universal Credit in addition to a disability benefit such as Personal Independence Allowance.

These people might have been entitled to both sets of payments. Anyone receiving means-tested benefits only and in receipt of them at the reference dates would have been entitled to £650 in 2022-2023 and £900 in 2023-2024.

Lastly, those on DWP's disability benefits alone would have been entitled to £150 for each of those years. If you were on both types of benefit, you could be entitled to £800 in the first year and £1,050 in the second.

So if you are entitled to both years, you could receive a total of £1,850, which is a considerable sum for those who have fallen through the net.