Following the news that people over 75 will have to pay for their own TV licence unless they receive Pension Credit, PHA UK’s director of membership support Shaun Clayton explains what we know about this under applied for benefit.

What do we know about Pension Credit? Pension Credit is what’s called an income-related benefit that’s made up of two parts. The first is something called Guarantee Credit – this is the part that tops up your weekly income to £167.25 for single people or £255.25 for couples, if your regular state pension falls below either of those figures. It’s worth noting though that if your partner is your carer or you’re responsible for a child under 20 who is in full-time education, you may be eligible for slightly more. The second part of Pensions Credit is Savings Credit, which is slightly more individual so unfortunately, I cannot give you facts and figures. What I can say is it’s an extra payment for people who saved some money towards their retirement, rather than a pension as such. Again, it’s worth noting that you may not be eligible for Savings Credit if you reached State Pension age after 6 April 2016.

In my experience Pension Credit is an underused resource – a lot of people don’t know it’s available. If you receive a lower rate of State Pension, you could be eligible without realising.

How can I claim Pension Credit? Unfortunately, you can only claim Pension Credit once you have reached the State Pension age of 68 for men and 67 for women. If you are in a couple, one of you must be receiving a form of Housing Benefit in order to be eligible for Pension Credit. You will also lose Pension Credit as a couple if you start living with someone who is below State Pension age. But if you’re unsure about whether you’re eligible, there is an online calculator on the gov.uk website that looks at your current financial situation and offers an idea on how much support you can expect. If you’re happy to do that, why not apply? We know from our recent Financial Impact Survey that living with PH can cause financial pressures, so we’re always looking out for ways to relieve it. There is nothing to lose and the statistics don’t lie – Pension Credit is a massively underclaimed support tool.

If you’re looking for more information on Pension Credit, visit www.gov.uk/pension-credit