22 November 2002
In a scathing report on government attempts to tackle pensioner poverty, published on November 18, the NAO said the Department for Work and Pensions and other central and local agencies must do more to inform over-65s of the benefits for which they qualify.
Around 20% of those most in need of support failed to apply for any benefits. Almost 770,000 (of 2 million eligible pensioners) did not, for example, claim the means-tested minimum income guarantee, formerly part of the Income Support scheme, developed to help those on very low incomes. Other benefits with poor take-up included council tax relief and housing benefit.
The NAO estimates that pensioners missed out on an average of £20 per week each – more than £1,000 annually.
The report, compiled by NAO director Jeremy Lonsdale, laid much of the blame for non-take-up on the government. He said pensioners were often 'defeated' by the complexity of the system and the long, confusing application forms, some of which were 40 pages long.
'Some of the information on application forms also overlaps with data on individuals that the DWP, or other bodies, already have,' Lonsdale added.
He said there were 36 different links between 16 benefits for which pensioners could qualify. 'That needs drastic simplification.'
Some of the DWP's attempts to simplify the system – such as the planned introduction of a broader pension credit next year, for which 3.8 million pensioners will be eligible – have 'backfired' and made matters more confusing, the NAO claimed. Others, such as an advertising campaign to improve take-up, had worked.
Other negative factors include the stigma pensioners attach to applications, their reluctance to part with sensitive personal information and declining opportunities for face-to-face assessment at benefit agencies.
The NAO concluded that the DWP must work harder in partnership with voluntary bodies, local authorities, family doctors and health agencies to produce simpler ways of claiming benefits.
A spokeswoman for the DWP said ministers were already implementing some of the NAO's suggestions and 'would look at other recommendations carefully'.
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