Woman, 78, receives £42,000 pension settlement after being underpaid for 12 years

Angela Jenner, 78, had only been getting 86p a week in her state pension. (Getty)

A woman has received a £42,000 pension settlement after being underpaid for 12 years.

Angela Jenner, 78, was only getting 86p a week in her state pension since 2008 but was entitled to much more.

She discovered the mistake after watching a TV advert about underpayments and making a claim.

Jenner, from near Stowmarket, Suffolk, received a bump in her weekly payment to £80.45 and a £42,700 payout when the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) admitted it made an error.

“What I didn’t realise was that when my husband retired in July 2008 I should have automatically received 60% of the basic state pension,” she told the Guardian.

“This never happened, which I assume was a computer error by the Department for Work and Pensions.”

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The DWP has admitted errors have been made in paying state pensions. (Getty)

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Former personal assistant Jenner said she was lucky she had a small occupational pension to live off but others who didn’t have one could have been affected greatly by the error.

It is estimated more than £100 million could be owed to thousands of women in underpaid pensions, the Guardian added.

The problem affects those who were part of the old scheme who qualified to receive a state pension prior to 6 April 2016.

That system allowed women to claim a share (60%) of their husband’s state pension if they had a reduced amount of contributions to national insurance.

The increased proportion was automatically added from 17 March 2008 but before this date, women had to apply for it and many didn’t because they did not know the could.

The DWP said in a statement: “We are aware of a number of cases where individuals have been underpaid state pension.

“We corrected our records and reimbursed those affected as soon as errors were identified.

“We are checking for further cases, and if any are found, awards will also be reviewed and any arrears paid.”

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