Pension Credit remains the “gateway to substantial additional support”, an expert says, as recent figures show applications have plummeted by a third. Hundreds of thousands of pensioners are eligible to claim the Department for Work and Pensions’ (DWP) Pension Credit benefit, which aims to boost people’s state pension and provide them with a more reasonable standard of living.
To qualify, households must have a weekly income below certain thresholds. Applicants must also live in England, Scotland or Wales and have reached State Pension age to qualify. The benefit could increase a person’s income by £4,300 a year on average, though the amount will vary depending on your circumstances. However, hundreds of thousands of people are still failing to claim it despite being eligible. Claims also dropped by more than a third between February 24, 2025 and February 22, 2026, compared with the same period a year earlier, according to official Government figures cited by AJ Bell.
Adam Cole, retirement specialist at Quilter, says the marked decrease in pension credit applications is “almost entirely explained by the Government’s rapid shift in Winter Fuel Payment rules”.
“Last winter’s decision to make the payment dependent on Pension Credit drove a surge of interest from people trying to protect their entitlement,” he said.
“With the return to a universal payment (subject to the income threshold of £35,000), that incentive has disappeared, and applications have dropped 36%.”
Mr Cole says what he describes as that “short period of policy flip-flopping” did have one positive impact.
“It pushed Pension Credit into the spotlight and forced many pensioners to check what they were entitled to, but as that attention has waned, so too have applications,” the finance expert added.
He noted that awards have only dropped by 13%, which he says “shows the underlying pool of eligible households has barely changed”, meaning it’s engagement rather than need which has declined.
Last month, the Government published research on Pension Credit journeys to understand the barriers to people claiming.
Mr Cole said the study “reinforces why take-up remains so fragile”. “It finds awareness is inconsistent, understanding of eligibility is low, and many entitled people assume they do not qualify because they own their home, have modest savings or have a partner with income.”
“Awareness of the passported benefits is also limited, even though these often drive applications when people realise what they are missing,” he added.
“Crucially, many applicants only succeed because family members or carers intervene to navigate a process that older pensioners often find overwhelming.
“This matches long standing evidence that pension credit is complex and that awareness, not generosity, is the real barrier.”
He says the 38% drop in claims that were rejected “underlines the impact of last year’s policy spike rather than any simplification of the rules”.
Mr Cole notes that backlogs have “improved sharply, but processing efficiency is not the same as improving genuine take up”.
In his opinion, the core issue is “too many eligible pensioners are not coming forward unless pushed by sudden policy changes”.
“Pension Credit remains the gateway to substantial additional support and that does not change with Winter Fuel Payment policy,” he added. “A system where applications fall by more than a third while eligibility is broadly unchanged shows that the barriers to claiming are still entrenched.
“Without clearer communication and more targeted outreach, many pensioners on low incomes will continue to miss out on essential help.”
A DWP spokesperson said: “The Government wants all pensioners to get the support they are rightly entitled to and thanks to our biggest ever Pension Credit take-up campaign, we have seen an additional 33,500 pension credit awards in 2025 compared with the previous year.
“To help boost claims we have also undertaken a new trial with Age UK and Independent Age which targets pensioners who are most likely to be eligible for Pension Credit but not currently claiming the benefit.”
Besides the cash boost, you can also unlock access to other means of support by claiming, like council tax reductions and free TV licences.
To make a claim, the applicant must live in England, Scotland or Wales and have reached the state pension age (currently 66 and over).
If this applies, the person must then work out their total weekly income. This should include the state pension, other pensions, earnings from employment and self-employment, and most social security benefits, such as Carer’s Allowance.
Eligible single people will see their weekly income topped up to £227.10, while those with partners will see their joint weekly income topped up to £346.60.
You can find out more about pension credit and eligibility criteria on the UK Government website.