Are You Missing Out on Hundreds of Pounds? Pension Credit Advice | Lorraine

now let's talk about something uh that was in uh all the papers and all the news broadcast yesterday the Prime Minister warning of a painful Autumn budget uh which many believe can only mean tax Rises CLA Barrett joins me now what were your takeaways from the speech well we've been talking about music this morning already and the soundtrack to Tony Blair's era in Downing Street was things can only get better by D and very much K starm was warning yesterday say things can only get worse before they get better hence why there are lots of fears that the wealthiest those with the broadest shoulders he says should expect big tax Rises to come at the Autumn budget now he stressed that the chancellor Rachel Reeves hasn't decided yet which taxes she might raise they're not going to raise income tax National Insurance or vat the sales tax there's a desire to protect working people so the taxes that could be in scope are how wealth people are taxed on their Investments like um shares bolet property and lots of um anger um expressed about the decision earlier um in July to means test the winter fuel payment which means that 10 million pensioners now won't be able to claim uh that 200 to 300 pound um payment this winter it will only be able to be received by the poorest pensioners who are already in receipt of pension credit and the problem with that of course is that there are millions of people who who may be eligible for pension credits but have never applied for them and so now they could be out of pocket by hundreds of pounds and losing something that they' relied on over the winter months so uh just explain the situation because we're going to actually talk about how to actually get onto pension credit and how to find out if you're eligible but just tell us a bit about it yeah so it tops up your income to a minimum level £218 per week if you're single £333 if you're a couple so if you're 66 or over and your weekly income is below that you could be one of the estimated 1.2 million people who should be receiving pension credit and aren't that's around 880,000 households that they think will be missing out not just on the benefit that you get but also this year the winter fuel allowance as well because only people on pension credit will get it and that alone is worth 200 to 300 and the interesting thing is is that I think there's lots of people who might have been like we're on £200 a week so it's only £18 like what's the point but now that £18 is worth £300 if you see what I mean isn't it because you might as well be on the pension credit because otherwise you will lose your winter fuel payment what what is the main reason why people just haven't been applying for it when they've been eligible well I think part of the problem is awareness and the government is launching a major awareness campaign next week so look out for that but also there's a lot of confusion about how different parts of the benefit system interact with one another and also the fact that people need to apply app to get this it is a means tested benefit so you do need to provide details of your income digital exclusion is undoubtedly a factor there's 4 million over 65s who lack basic digital skills and the easiest way to do a check to see if you could get this we'll find out more of course is to look online but also pride is a big factor an there's a stigma attached to claiming benefits especially for older people but I would say please apply for this you are entitled to this support and this winter it's vital that you get it so we need to dispel some of the myths about who's entitled if you own your own home can you claim yes because qualifying for help is all based on your income so if you own your own home even if you have savings you can still apply and receive pension credit so if you are disabled I suppose that means if you're on disability benefits of some kind or a carer uh are you likely to qualify for pension credit if anything you're more likely to qualify for pension credit if you're already getting benefits like attendance like pip disability benefits and the car's allowance as you say because your income will be topped up to a higher level so you could get up to an extra 8150 per week um if you're on disability benefits and if you're a carer for anyone including your grandchildren which is one that people don't often realize you could be eligible to get an extra 45s per week and even more if your grandchildren live with you and they're either under 16 or under 20 and in full-time educational training fine and so as you say how much extra could you get if your grandchildren live with you um it it depends on their age what they're doing if they have a disability but you know anywhere between an extra 45 to 76s per week so well worth looking into and Charities are saying they're helping lots of people work out how these different entitlements all work together which is one of the main reasons we think that pension credit is so under claimed by so many people H now it says here that you've got a quiz me I do what this about then a special quiz so ran I'm putting you on the spot which of the following benefits would you also get if you successfully claim for pension credit is it a the winter fuel payment B free NHS Dental Care C extra help with housing costs or d a free television license well obviously the winter fuel payment cuz that's the point of it isn't it actually you know what it is a bit of a trick question you would get the wi of your payment but you would also get all of the others the TV license only for those pensioners who are over 75 but it just shows you even if you're only entitled to a few pounds worth of that income top up it's a Gateway benefit huge amount all of those other things that you could be entitled to could be that there's much more help there than people realize which is why it's so important that people go online and claim yeah there's a phone number you can apply by post we've got details we going to put this on the website afterwards and I'll have it all over my Instagram all you need to do is have your National Insurance number details of your income savings and investment and your bank details if you're not Savvy with online stuff and don't know how to use the Checker perhaps a relative could help you or you could offer and the deadline if you want to get the win of your payment you must get your application in by the 21st de time right good Claire absolutely brilliant to get all that information out there lots of people will have been wondering so thank you so much soar find out lots of course he won't qualify for this that's another problem which we'll talk about in couple weeks H now if you have got a financial question for CLA or any questions for our Lorraine experts and we want to hear from you then uh whether it's a fashion dilemma for Mark You' got a health question for Dr Amir relationship advice from some of our team our experts are all standing by for you and they might be able to help so send your questions in to Lorraine itv.com got to be 18 or over email us by midday on Friday the 30th of August