Can I claim widow pension 20 years after my husband died?

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SusanMG6492
SusanMG6492 Online Community Member Posts: 5 Listener
edited July 30 in Benefits and income

I was a widow about 20 years ago and I was wondering if I can claim widow pension even I am 62 years old and my husband died 20 years ago so I’m I still have the benefit yes or no let me know what you think ok thanks Susan bye

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  • Girl_No1
    Girl_No1 Online Community Member Posts: 369 Pioneering

    I don't think it's called a widow's pension now. It's Bereavement Support Payment, and is time-limited.

    I don't know if DWP consider backdated claims from so long ago, but here is the link to the current criteria.

    https://www.gov.uk/bereavement-support-payment/eligibility

    Hopefully, someone else will come along to provide definite advice on backdated claims etc.

  • SusanAM123
    SusanAM123 Online Community Member Posts: 11 Listener
    https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/137176/can-i-claim-widow-pension-20-years-after-my-husband-died

    I don’t know if I can get it

  • Kimi87
    Kimi87 Online Community Member Posts: 6,339 Championing

    Try a trained benefits advisor.

    https://advicefinder.turn2us.org.uk/

  • MW123
    MW123 Scope Member Posts: 1,404 Championing

    @SusanAM123

    Hello Susan and welcome to the community.

    The old widow’s pension in the UK was a benefit for people whose spouse died before 6 April 2001. After that date, it was scrapped and replaced by other types of bereavement support, which have also changed over the years.

    So, if your husband passed away in 2005, you would not have been able to claim the old widow’s pension. Instead, there were other bereavement payments available at the time, but those have since been replaced as well.

    In 2017, a new system called the Bereavement Support Payment was introduced. When I lost my husband, I had three months to claim. I received a one-off payment of £2,500, followed by £100 a month for 18 months. After that, the payments stopped.

    If you did not claim anything at the time and had a good reason, such as not being told about it or not being able to apply, you should contact the DWP for advice. However, in most cases, it is not possible to make a new claim years later.

    That said, if you have never remarried, you might still receive some of your late husband’s additional State Pension (not the basic part) when you claim your own State Pension, as long as he paid enough National Insurance. Make sure you tell the Pension Service about your husband’s National Insurance record when you apply for your own state pension, and they will check if you are owed anything automatically.

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