Financial expert said people have just weeks left to take action which could add £10,000 to pensions
08:09, 09 Mar 2026Updated 11:45, 09 Mar 2026
Martin Lewis has said people can make a simple check to see if they can add money to their state pensions(Image: ITV)
Financial guru Martin Lewis has issued an urgent appeal for people to verify one critical detail – which could boost their pensions by more than £10,000. The money-saving expert has warned that anyone aged between 40 and 73 must act now, cautioning that failure to do so by 5 April means the ‘door shuts forever’.
Writing on X, he previously urged: “Pls share. If someone hasn’t checked this yet and is between the age of 40 and 73. Without exaggeration it could be worth £10,000s, so check. If you miss it now the door shuts forever on 5 April.”
A fresh update on the Money Saving Expert website confirmed the opportunity applies to men born after 5 April 1951 (currently aged up to 74) and women born after 5 April 1953 (currently up to 72). Those born before these dates receive the old State Pension, meaning this doesn’t affect them, it explained.
Mr Lewis disclosed last year on his ITV show that roughly 200,000 individuals had the ‘wrong’ person claiming child benefit – indicating they may have missed out on years of National Insurance contributions, potentially leading to a diminished state pension. To qualify for the complete new State Pension (£230.25 weekly in 2025/26), individuals typically require 35 qualifying National Insurance (NI) years.
A minimum of 10 years is necessary to receive any state pension whatsoever. Those with gaps or fewer than 35 years can make voluntary contributions to increase their entitlement.
Each year, the window for retrospective contributions shifts forward by 12 months, meaning a previous year’s opportunity to ‘top up’ disappears.
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During the programme, a pensioner shared his extraordinary experience of increasing his pension by £32,000 after acting on guidance from the financial expert. Viewer Gabriel had discovered a significant mistake regarding child benefit claims that had affected his National Insurance credits and, consequently, his pension entitlement.
Co-presenter Jeanette Kwakye relayed Gabriel’s correspondence: “Gabriel’s been in touch. After watching your show about pensions, I realised I have about 14 years of shortfall. I asked for my wife’s child benefit, national insurance credits to be transferred to my name, and I received 11 years of credit increasing my pension by over 60 pounds a week.”
Gabriel noted: “If I live 10 years after pension age, I’ll get an extra £32,000. So thank you so much.”
Mr Lewis then indicated the financial gain could potentially be considerably higher should Gabriel live longer, stating: ” Of course, typical life expectancy once you take your pension is double that, so it could be 60 grand”. He also highlighted a broader issue, noting: “There are, I believe, 200,000 people in the country who had the wrong parent claim child benefit. Because what happens is if you’re working, you get national insurance credits that go towards your pension. And if you’re looking after a child, you also get national insurance pen credits.
“But if you have one working parent and one non-working parent, and the working parent is the one who claims child benefit, then they’re already getting it from working. So they don’t need it from childcare. And the other one isn’t getting so that transfer will be that he was earning less than the threshold to get national insurance credits. She was earning over it. He should have been claiming he wasn’t so they’ve transferred it. £32,000. 200,000 people in that situation. It’s worth looking at that. That is brilliant.”
Martine shared with MSE: “After listening to Martin’s podcast, I checked my NI contributions and found I had eight years missing! I’ve now paid six years and will pay the next two years when possible. This has made a difference of about £49 a week, which is considerable! I’d never have known without the podcast! Thank you.”
Claiming Child Benefit allows someone who has ceased employment to care for children to build up national insurance (NI) credits, which are vital for securing the full state pension. Should the wrong person – specifically the higher earner – claim it, the lower earner risks losing out on a significant portion of their state pension.
The Money Saving Expert website states: “If you (or your partner) are not working, or earning less than £123 a week, claiming Child Benefit lets you earn NI credits you wouldn’t otherwise have earned. So it’s crucial you apply, even if one partner’s income means you’ll have to pay back some or all of the Child Benefit payment. New Child Benefit claims can currently only be backdated by three months, so apply ASAP.”
HMRC has disclosed that approximately 200,000 parents could be losing out on credits because the higher-earning partner is registered for Child Benefit. Parents and carers can apply for National Insurance credits here.
Should an individual or their partner be registered for Child Benefit, they can apply for any missing credits from their National Insurance record and transfer credits from a spouse or partner.
The Government has set up a new online service that will show some people how much their State Pension could increase by and the NI years needed to achieve this. People are then be able to pay for these missing years securely online without having to speak to anyone.
For more information on how to claim it back visit MSE here.