Figures in this article are from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) and HMRC, as published on the dates given. They were checked in October 2026.

Some pensioners have been paid less State Pension than they were entitled to. The DWP has run two exercises to find and correct these underpayments. The first, known as LEAP (Legal Entitlements and Administrative Practices), has finished. The second, for missing Home Responsibilities Protection (HRP), is still open to new applications.

What the LEAP exercise found

LEAP checked State Pension claims for errors that, in some cases, dated back to 1985. Most of the people affected were women whose State Pension should have been increased using a husband's, ex-husband's or late husband's National Insurance record.

Between January 2021 and March 2025, the DWP found 130,948 underpayments and repaid £804.7 million. It declared the exercise complete in April 2025.

Source: DWP, State Pension underpayments: progress on cases reviewed to 31 March 2025 (published 24 April 2025). Averages include cases where £0 was owed because another benefit had been overpaid.

In 2022, the DWP's own projection was that about 237,000 people might have been underpaid around £1.46 billion. The final figures were lower than that projection.

Who was most likely to have been underpaid

• people who get a low basic State Pension in their own right and were entitled to an increase based on their spouse's or civil partner's National Insurance record

• widowed people who could inherit basic State Pension from their late spouse or civil partner, up to the full basic rate

• people aged 80 or over with a low or no State Pension, who may be entitled to the "over 80" (Category D) pension

Missing Home Responsibilities Protection

Home Responsibilities Protection (HRP) helped protect the State Pension of people who stayed at home to care for children or others between 1978 and 2010. Some people who claimed Child Benefit before May 2000 didn't give a National Insurance number, so the protection wasn't added to their record.

Between January 2024 and March 2025, the DWP found 12,379 cases with arrears from missing HRP and paid about £104 million, an average of £8,377 per case (DWP and HMRC, published 22 May 2025). HMRC sent letters to about 370,000 people who might be affected.

How to check

• Missing HRP: use HMRC's HRP eligibility checker on GOV.UK. If you're eligible, you can apply online or by post using form CF411. If HRP is added, the DWP reviews your State Pension and pays any arrears due.

• Other underpayments: contact the Pension Service if you think your State Pension may be wrong. You can check your National Insurance record and State Pension forecast on GOV.UK.

• Someone who has died: next of kin or executors can ask the DWP whether the person was underpaid. GOV.UK has guidance on how to do this.

Checking and applying is free. You don't need to use a claims company.

For comparison, the median State Pension for single pensioners was £11,440 a year (2024/25 prices). The average LEAP repayment for widowed pensioners, £11,725, was about a year's State Pension at that level.

This article is for general information. If you're not sure what you're entitled to, contact the Pension Service or get free guidance from MoneyHelper.