Pensioners not claiming enough, says NAO
The National Audit Office has claimed that tens of thousands of pensioners are living below the poverty line because they are failing to claim around £2bn of benefits to which they are entitled.
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Pensioners are failing to claim these entitlements due to the complexity of the system, daunting claim forms, fear of stigma and a loss of independence and a reluctance to provide sensitive information about themselves, according to the NAO. On average pensioners are missing out on around £20 a week.
The NAO said that despite the Department of Work and Pensions trying to make claiming easier it needed to work more closely with voluntary agencies, family doctors and other parts of the health service in order to improve the take-up of such claims.