State pension payment dates are changing next month – how you could be affected | Personal Finance | Finance
State pensioners may see their payment dates for next month change as there are three bank holidays coming up. Payments are often made early when bank holidays fall on a date when the payments would usually go out.
These are the bank holidays coming up next month and how state pension payments will be affected:
- Early May Bank Holiday – May 1. Payments for this date will arrive on April 28
- King Charles III’s coronation Bank Holiday – May 8. Payments for this date will arrive on May 5
- Spring Bank Holiday – May 26. Payments for this date will arrive on May 29.
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If a person’s payment is late in arriving, they may want to check the date on their award notice and contact their bank before contacting the DWP.
State pension payments have increased 10.1 percent this week with the full new state pension paying £203.85 a week while the basic state pension is £156.20 a week.
This is the biggest ever increase for the state pension but is still outpaced by rising prices, with the latest figure for inflation at 10.4 percent.
Becky O’Connor, director of public affairs at PensionBee, said this year’s increase will provide a “huge relief” for many pensioners, but things may change next year.
Catherine Foot, director of Phoenix Insights, said there are “serious questions” about how the state pension will be funded.
She warned: “Costs are set to balloon in the coming decades as our younger wave of baby boomers (those born in the early 1960s) reach state pension age and live longer in retirement.
“The state pension has become a political hot potato with decisions delayed until after the next election.
“Even with a future commitment to the triple lock, relying solely on the state pension will leave people short of a decent standard of living in retirement.”
A review on the state pension age, which is currently 66 for both men and women, was recently published.
The Government has opted to put off bringing forward the dates for increasing the state pension age, until after the next General Election.
The state pension age is due to increase gradually from 66 to 67 between 2026 and 2028 and from 67 to 68 between 2044 and 2046.
A person can check their state pension entitlement using the state pension forecast tool on the Government website.
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