{"id":99902,"date":"2024-12-17T16:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-12-17T16:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/?p=99902"},"modified":"2024-12-17T15:52:11","modified_gmt":"2024-12-17T15:52:11","slug":"pension-credit-winter-fuel-payment-deadline","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/pension-credit-winter-fuel-payment-deadline\/","title":{"rendered":"Pension Credit: Final Deadline to Claim \u00a3300 Winter Fuel Payment Approaches"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>UK households face a <strong>crucial deadline<\/strong> of <strong>December 21<\/strong> to submit backdated claims for <em>Pension Credit<\/em> and qualify for the <strong>Winter Fuel Payment<\/strong>, worth up to <strong>\u00a3300<\/strong> for eligible pensioners. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has issued a four-day warning to ensure low-income retirees don\u2019t miss out on this vital support.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Understanding Pension Credit: Ensuring Financial Security for Low-Income Retirees<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/pension-credit-state-pensioners-urged-claim-dwp\/\">Pension Credit<\/a> is a government benefit designed to guarantee a <strong>minimum income<\/strong> for retirees on low incomes. It boosts weekly earnings to <strong>\u00a3218.15 for single claimants<\/strong> and <strong>\u00a3332.95 for couples<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In addition to income support, Pension Credit unlocks access to a range of <strong>additional benefits<\/strong>, including:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Housing benefit<\/strong> for rent support<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Council tax reductions<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Help with <strong>heating bills<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Free dental treatment<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Free TV licences<\/strong> for those aged 75 or over<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Jon Greer, head of retirement policy at Quilter, emphasized: <em>\u201cIt\u2019s vital for pensioners on low incomes to check their eligibility. Even a small claim can make a significant difference, especially during the winter months.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Key Information on the \u00a3300 Winter Fuel Payment for Pensioners<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>To qualify for the <strong>\u00a3300 <a href=\"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/winter-fuel-payment-grants-200-pounds\/\">Winter Fuel Payment<\/a><\/strong>, pensioners must have been eligible during the \u201c<strong>qualifying week<\/strong>\u201d from <strong>September 16 to 22<\/strong>. Due to backdating rules, the deadline to submit a claim for this period is <strong>December 21<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Tom Selby, director of public policy at AJ Bell, explained: <em>\u201cThe decision to means-test the Winter Fuel Payment makes it more critical than ever for low-income retirees to claim Pension Credit. Even a partial claim submitted in time can trigger access to the \u00a3300 allowance.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Government Reports Significant Increase in Winter Fuel Payment Applications<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The government reports that over <strong>one million pensioners<\/strong> will receive the Winter Fuel Payment this year, with an uptick in <strong>Pension Credit applications<\/strong> following recent campaigns. A DWP spokesperson stated: <em>\u201cWe have seen applications double, with 40,000 additional pensioners now receiving support.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To meet demand, <strong>additional resources<\/strong> have been allocated, resulting in a <strong>51% increase<\/strong> in processed applications. However, despite these efforts, many eligible pensioners still risk missing out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Resources for Checking Eligibility and Applying for Pension Credit<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The DWP provides an <strong>online tool<\/strong> to check eligibility for Pension Credit. Pensioners can also call the <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.gov.uk\/pension-credit\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Pension Credit<\/a> claim line<\/strong> for assistance with their application. Independent organizations, such as <strong>Citizens Advice<\/strong> and <strong>Age UK<\/strong>, offer valuable guidance and support to those unfamiliar with the process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Benefits Associated with Pension Credit<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table class=\"has-fixed-layout\"><thead><tr><th><strong>Benefit<\/strong><\/th><th><strong>Details<\/strong><\/th><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td><strong>Weekly income top-up<\/strong><\/td><td>\u00a3218.15 (single) \/ \u00a3332.95 (couple)<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Winter Fuel Payment<\/strong><\/td><td>Up to \u00a3300<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Heating cost assistance<\/strong><\/td><td>Discounts on energy bills<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Council tax reduction<\/strong><\/td><td>Amount varies by local authority<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Free TV licences<\/strong><\/td><td>Available for over-75s<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Free dental treatment<\/strong><\/td><td>Covered for eligible recipients<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>As energy costs rise and temperatures drop, the <strong>Pension Credit<\/strong> and <strong>Winter Fuel Payment<\/strong> provide essential financial relief for low-income pensioners. With the <strong>December 21 deadline looming<\/strong>, retirees are urged to check their eligibility and submit claims promptly to secure this valuable support.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>UK pensioners have just days left to submit backdated claims for Pension Credit to access vital winter support. This assistance provides much-needed relief for low-income retirees, helping them manage rising energy costs during the colder months.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":99903,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[45],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-99902","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-retirement","generate-columns","tablet-grid-50","mobile-grid-100","grid-parent","grid-33","no-featured-image-padding"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99902","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=99902"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99902\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":99904,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99902\/revisions\/99904"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/99903"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=99902"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=99902"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/en.econostrum.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=99902"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}