The £70 refund letter that isn't a scam
About one million people - mostly women - are owed pension tax relief and will be contacted by HMRC.
A recent letter campaign by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) aims to reimburse over one million low earners who have missed out on top-up pension payments. These individuals, predominantly women, earned close to, but not exceeding, £12,570 annually. The government has identified that low earners who received pension top-ups through Net Pay Arrangement schemes received less than those administered via Relief at Source schemes, without any control over the scheme type.
The government has decided to top up those who have missed out, through what's called a low earner's pension payment. The payments will initially be made for the 2024-25 tax year, with automated payments for later years. Customers don't need to apply for these payments; they will be notified via a letter or online personal tax account by HMRC.
HMRC will not contact recipients via text, email, or phone about the payment, and will never ask for PIN codes or passwords. To ensure the authenticity of the letter, customers can verify the information on Gov.uk or look for specific keywords like "Low Earner's Pension Payment". If recipients are digitally excluded, they can call HMRC to accept their payment instead.
Sir Steve Webb, a former pensions minister, expressed concern over the potential low take-up of the payment, emphasizing the importance of effective communication to ensure eligible individuals receive their entitled benefits.
Written by urgent.news from BBC News's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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- The £70 refund letter that isn't a scam bbc.co.uk
