Mayor expands scheme which helped older Londoners obtain £8.4 million in unclaimed Pension Credit score

A scheme that has helped Londoners obtain a further £8.4 million in unclaimed Pension Credit score is to be rolled out to 10,000 extra older Londoners on decrease incomes.

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, along with London boroughs, launched a marketing campaign in February to make sure older Londoners don’t miss out on receiving all the Pension Credit score they’re entitled to in the course of the ongoing cost-of-living disaster.

Greater than 8,200 older households had been focused and the Mayor as we speak revealed that the marketing campaign resulted in 2,165 profitable claims from eligible Londoners, amounting to only beneath £8.4 million (£8,398,429) in direct extra annual revenue – a median of £3,879 per declare.

The marketing campaign, in partnership with welfare and knowledge analytics firm Coverage in Apply, noticed eligible older Londoners in 17 London boroughs obtain focused letters to make them conscious that they need to be claiming this invaluable profit.

Following the success of this preliminary part, the Mayor has introduced that he can be increasing the marketing campaign this autumn to incorporate as much as 23 boroughs. It’s estimated that these boroughs will contact a complete of over 10,000 households, with as much as £9 million in Pension Credit score more likely to be claimed.

Unclaimed Pension Credit score is estimated to be value £246.5 million a 12 months in London alone, with eligible households every lacking out on a median over £3,500 yearly.

The Authorities supplies Pension Credit score to folks of state pension age on low incomes. Along with offering more money for older Londoners on low incomes, receipt of Pension Credit score additionally unlocks a variety of additional help, together with assist with vitality and council tax payments, free NHS dental remedy, Housing Profit for renters and free TV licences for these aged 75 or above.

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, mentioned: “This has been a massively profitable marketing campaign that has secured greater than £8 million in unclaimed advantages for older Londoners on the bottom incomes, who’re disproportionately feeling the price of dwelling squeeze.

“I’m happy that we are going to now be extending the scheme to hundreds extra older Londoners who might not know they’re eligible to obtain Pension Credit score or declare it. That is a part of my dedication to proceed constructing a greater and extra affluent London for everybody.”