State pension: Not everyone gets the full amount – find out if you’re on track | Personal Finance | Finance
As the cost of living continues to rise amid historic levels of inflation, it is important people maximise their income as much as possible. This is particularly crucial for pensioners who may rely on the state pension to fund their retirement.
A free Government website can be used to find out how much state pension someone may be entitled to when they reach state pension age.
It is known as the ‘Check your state pension forecast’ tool, and the portal can provide various pieces of key information regarding an individual’s state pension.
The service can be used to find out:
- How much state pension someone may be entitled to
- When they can get it
- How to increase their entitlement, if they can
READ MORE: £150 council tax rebate available from April – check now if you can claim
However, this is only paid to people who reached state pension age before April 6, 2016.
The state pension increases every year by a minimum of 2.5 percent, and it can rise by more if the rate of inflation or average earnings growth exceed this rate.
For example, the state pension will increase by 3.1 percent from April 2022.
This will add £5.55 per week to the full new state pension, increasing it to £185.15 a week.
The forecast tool does not take account of future increases to the state pension, so Britons should keep in mind that the figure they are given as an estimate of their entitlement may not be 100 percent accurate.
How to get more state pension
Not everyone will automatically get the £179.60 per week maximum, as this depends on their National Insurance record.
Britons may need up to 35 years of National Insurance contributions to get the full new state pension, and to get any state pension at all, they will need at least 10 years of National Insurance qualifying years.
These are usually accumulated through working and paying National Insurance, but can also be earned through certain benefits or paying voluntary contributions.
The Government website can be used to see if an individual has any gaps in their National Insurance record which could mean they are unable to get the full state pension.
They may be able to fill these gaps by claiming certain benefits with attached National Insurance credits or by paying voluntary contributions, and therefore increase their state pension entitlement.
State pension age
The state pension age currently sits at 66 in the UK for both men and women. However, there are two scheduled increases which Britons should be aware of.
By 2028, the state pension age will rise to 67, and it will increase again to 68 by 2046. This will therefore affect some future retirees and when they will be able to get their state pension
The forecast tool can provide users with a date for when they will reach state pension age.
