DWP state pension underpayments branded ‘shambles’ as action demanded | Personal Finance | Finance [Video]

Thousands of retired Britons – many of them women – who were underpaid on their State Pension have received more than £570 million in back payments, it has emerged.

Between January 11, 2021, and February 29, 2024 some 97,016 under payments were identified adding up to £571.6m, according to the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP).

However, some finance industry experts believe that as much as £3billion could be owed to more than 237,000 pensioners.

Dame Meg Hillier MP condemned the underpayments, which have led to real hardship for thousands of elderly people, as a “shameful shambles”.

Affected groups include women retiring under the old state pension system. This is because many did not receive the state pension they were entitled to under their husband’s national insurance record.

The DWP‘s latest ARA estimates the total amount of arrears due to be £835 million.

The head of retirement analysis at Hargreaves Lansdown, Helen Morrissey, said: “Progress …