Charities Urge Governments to Fix Pension Credit Gap

The Centre for Ageing Better and Independent Age are calling for urgent government intervention to address a retirement crisis characterized by millions in unclaimed benefits. A report from the Centre for Ageing Better indicates that over 900,000 households are missing out on more than £2 billion in Pension Credit, warning that 29% of people aged 60 to 69 are currently in financially precarious circumstances.

Further research from Independent Age highlights a specific crisis in Scotland, where nearly 200,000 pensioners are failing to claim approximately £346 million in annual benefits, including Pension Credit and Housing Benefit. The charity estimates that full take-up would lift 30,000 older people out of poverty and save health and care services £90 million by reducing poverty-related health issues.

To resolve these gaps, the Centre for Ageing Better urges the Government of the United Kingdom and the Department for Work and Pensions to implement automatic benefit take-up through data matching and pre-filled claims. Independent Age is calling for a national strategy with clear targets from the UK government and specific actions within the Scottish Government's upcoming Benefit Take-up Strategy.

The Government of the United Kingdom responded by highlighting its triple lock commitment and a Pension Credit campaign that resulted in 33,500 additional awards in 2025. Meanwhile, Scottish Social Justice Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville defended Scotland's £3.5 billion cost-of-living package while calling on the UK government to take more appropriate action to ensure citizens are aware of available benefits.