A state pensioner endured a nearly year-long struggle with the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to secure her rightful back payments totalling £17,700. Retired administration manager Christine Plant was owed this sum due to missing Home Responsibilities Protection (HRP) from her National Insurance (NI) record, an issue thought to be impacting hundreds of thousands of women.
She had to grapple with both HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) and the DWP, making several lengthy phone calls before finally receiving what she was owed. The HRP scheme operated between 1978 and 2010, with HRP added to an individual’s record to fill in their NI contributions towards their state pension while they were not working because they were caring for a child or a sick or disabled person.
The missing HRP issue predominantly affects women who took time off work to care for their children. In Ms Plant’s case, she was entitled to a £28 increase to her weekly state pension, raising her entitlement to £171 a week, accruing her back payments of over £17,700, reports This Is Money.
She initially contacted HMRC in November 2023 suspecting she might be owed payments for the period she was not working while raising her children. The tax authority responded to her the same month confirming she was owed some money, but she had a frustrating time pursuing to pursue her claim.
Despite calling three times and being told her case would be marked as ‘urgent’, she heard nothing further. On one occasion, she spent three hours on the phone, being transferred between different departments without success.
She expressed her frustration: “I rang HMRC again. I said it’s been a year. I said if I owed you any money you wouldn’t wait this long.”
After 11 months of back and forth, her issue with HMRC was finally resolved. A spokesperson for the DWP told This Is Money: “We have apologised for the delay in processing Mrs Plant’s award. Where errors do occur, we are committed to resolving them as quickly as possible.”
The Government began issuing notifications regarding Home Responsibilities Protection (HRP) over a year ago. It is estimated that around 210,000 pensioners will receive a share of the £1.5billion in underpayments, with each individual owed £5,000 on average.
If a claimant has passed away, a representative can file a claim on their behalf. There’s a tool available on the Government website to check eligibility for Home Responsibilities Protection.
The online HRP tool can be used to apply for HRP, for full tax years (6 April to 5 April) between 1978 and 2010, if any of the following were the case:
- you were claiming Child Benefit for a child under 16
- you were caring for a child with your partner who claimed Child Benefit instead of you
- you were getting Income Support because you were caring for someone who was sick or disabled
- you were caring for a sick or disabled person who was claiming certain benefits.