Unclaimed benefits could significantly boost an older person's health and wellbeing but need to be accessible, says charity
A new charity study revealed that three quarters of people over the age of 65 feel they don't know enough about the benefits they are entitled to and where to go to find out more information about how to claim them.
Scotland’s leading charity for people over the age of 50, Age Scotland, have warned that the lack of information and barriers to claiming such as digital-only applications are having a detrimental effect on the financial wellbeing of older Scots.
The Age Scotland Money Matters project, which ran 81 roadshows and surveyed 1206 people between 65-85 also found that a third of older people are financially squeezed, have trouble paying bills or have no savings.
The project’s information roadshows across Scotland found that after completion of their workshops more than half of attendees felt that their attendance had made a difference to the way they feel about their finances and 77% reported an increase in their knowledge of how to find out if there are benefits that they are entitled to.
Adam Stachura, Age Scotland’s Head of Policy and Communications said, “Every year, billions of pounds in benefits and entitlements go unclaimed in Scotland. Our Money Matters project has identified that a third of older people are financially squeezed and could be helped if they were better informed about their entitlement options and they were able to easily access them.
“Through benefit checks run by our free helpline we identified almost £600,000 in unclaimed benefits for older Scots last year but this is just the tip of the iceberg.
“There is still too much confusion, stigma, incorrect assumptions and lack of clarity over where to find advice and support on making a benefit claim if you are older.
“Many older people think they will not be entitled to benefits either because they have some savings or have been discouraged to do so through benefits’ bad publicity. We know that others are put off from having to claim online, do not know the benefit exists or they expect lots of invasive questions about their bank account.”
The Office of National Statistics recorded that more than half a million older people did not use the Internet in 2017 – with only two in five of those over 75 using the Internet.
Adam said, “As many older people do not have access to the Internet, there needs to be a clear and easy way for them to receive support during the application process. We know that older people prefer to talk to a real person – whether it their banks, customer service or when discussing entitlements. With many local councils now requiring people to claim benefits online, this creates a barrier and for many this can cause them to miss out on entitlements that could enhance their quality of life.”
One benefit that is under accessed by older people is the pension credit – with 4 in 10 not receiving what they’re entitled to and missing out on hundreds of millions of pounds.
Age Scotland is calling on older Scots to call their free helpline for a benefits check with one of their skilled advisors and for government and councils to resource similar information workshops across the country to help people better understand what they are entitled to.
The Age Scotland free helpline is available to people over the age of 50, their families and carers on 0800 12 44 222 and is open Monday to Friday 9 am to 5 pm. It helped secure £587,000 in unclaimed benefits for older Scots last year.
