More than one million pensioners aged 66 and over could be missing out on a monthly payment of up to £458.40 from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) for 56 health conditions. Attendance Allowance, a benefit designed to help older people with care needs, is significantly underclaimed across the country.
Underclaimed benefit
Currently, over 1.7 million people aged 66 and over receive the payment, but many more may qualify. Research by Policy in Practice suggests that up to 1.1 million pensioners were not claiming support in 2023, leaving an estimated £5.2 billion unpaid. Experts believe a lack of awareness is the key reason behind the shortfall.
Eligibility for Attendance Allowance
To claim Attendance Allowance, people must be over the state pension age (currently 66, and it's gradually rising to 67 by 2028) and have a disability or illness that impacts their daily life. This can include conditions such as learning difficulties, sight or hearing impairments, mobility issues like arthritis, or mental health conditions such as dementia.
Claimants must be able to show they need assistance with personal care tasks, such as washing, dressing, eating and drinking, or require supervision for safety, either during the day or night. They must also have needed help for at least six months. However, those who are terminally ill can claim the benefit immediately.
A formal diagnosis is not required to apply; as long as someone has experienced difficulties for six months due to their condition, they can claim. However, it is important to note that those already receiving Personal Independence Payment (PIP), Adult Disability Payment (ADP), or the care component of Disability Living Allowance (DLA) are not eligible for Attendance Allowance.
List of qualifying conditions
The benefit is tax-free and isn’t means-tested, so current savings or income won’t affect the claim, nor will it affect other benefits received. The 56 health conditions that could qualify for Attendance Allowance include:
- Arthritis
- Spondylosis
- Back Pain – other/precise diagnosis not specified
- Disease of the muscles, bones or joints
- Trauma to limbs
- Blindness
- Deafness
- Heart disease
- Chest disease
- Asthma
- Cystic fibrosis
- Cerebrovascular disease
- Peripheral vascular disease
- Epilepsy
- Neurological diseases
- Multiple sclerosis
- Parkinson's disease
- Motor neurone disease
- Chronic pain syndromes
- Diabetes mellitus
- Metabolic disease
- Traumatic paraplegia/tetraplegia
- Major trauma other than traumatic paraplegia/tetraplegia
- Learning difficulties
- Psychosis
- Psychoneurosis
- Personality disorder
- Dementia
- Behavioural disorder
- Alcohol and drug abuse
- Hyperkinetic syndrome
- Renal disorders
- Inflammatory bowel disease
- Bowel and stomach disease
- Blood disorders
- Haemophilia
- Multi-system disorders
- Multiple allergy syndrome
- Skin disease
- Malignant disease
- Severely mentally impaired
- Double amputee
- Deaf/blind
- Haemodialysis
- Frailty
- Total parenteral autrition
- AIDS
- Infectious diseases: Viral disease - coronavirus Covid-19
- Infectious diseases: Viral disease - precise diagnosis not specified
- Infectious diseases: Bacterial disease – tuberculosis
- Infectious diseases: Bacterial disease – precise diagnosis not specified
- Infectious diseases: Protozoal disease – malaria
- Infectious diseases: Protozoal disease – other/precise diagnosis not specified
- Infectious diseases - other/precise diagnosis not specified
- Cognitive disorder - other/precise diagnosis not specified
- Terminally ill
Payment rates
The lower and higher Attendance Allowance payment rates as of April 2026 are: Lower rate: £76.70 per week; Higher rate: £114.60 per week. This means that those entitled to the higher rate will receive around £458.40 per month, or £5,500 per year.
How to claim
People can claim Attendance Allowance online or by post. To claim by post, people must complete a form detailing the help they need and the assistance they do not need. To get a form, people can either call the helpline on 0800 731 0122 or download it from the Government website.
