A State Pension claim from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) does not end automatically when a loved one dies. The type of State Pension a person receives depends on their date of birth - men born before April 6, 1951 and women born before April 6, 1953 are eligible for the Basic State Pension, while those born after these dates get the New State Pension.
What to do when someone dies
When the person dies, you must inform the Pension Service so payments stop. You can do this by calling the Pension Service helpline on 0800 731 0469.
You may be entitled to extra payments from your deceased spouse's or civil partner's State Pension, depending on their National Insurance Contributions and the date they reached State Pension age. If you have not reached State Pension age yet, you might also be eligible for Bereavement benefits.
Inheritance rules for Basic and New State Pension
If a spouse or civil partner reached State Pension age before April 6, 2016, GOV.UK instructs people to contact the Pension Service once someone dies to check what they can claim. They may be able to increase their Basic State Pension by using the deceased's qualifying years if they do not already get the full amount.
If they reached State Pension age on or after April 6, 2016, or are under State Pension age when their spouse or civil partner dies, the "Your partner's National Insurance record and your State Pension" tool on the UK Government website can help check what inheritance they may be entitled to.
For people who are single or divorced, or who have had their civil partnership dissolved, their estate may be able to claim some of a Basic State Pension. This applies if the person dies after reaching State Pension age and only if the State Pension had not been claimed. In this circumstance, the estate can claim up to three months of the Basic State Pension.
Deferring, top-ups, and additional payments
Once someone reaches State Pension age, they can defer payments if they choose to carry on working. This will increase payments by around £660 each year when they eventually decide to claim.
Anyone who has topped up their State Pension may have some or all of the top-up inherited by their spouse or civil partner, according to guidance on GOV.UK.
For the New State Pension, a person may be able to inherit an extra payment if they are widowed. However, they cannot inherit anything should they remarry or form a new civil partnership before they reach State Pension age.
If a marriage or civil partnership began before April 6, 2016, a person may inherit part of their deceased partner's Additional State Pension if the deceased partner reached State Pension age before April 6, 2016, or if they died before April 6, 2016 but would have reached State Pension age on or after that date.
A person will inherit half of their partner's protected payment if their marriage or civil partnership began before April 6, 2016, their State Pension age is on or after April 6, 2016, and they died on or after April 6, 2016. This payment will be made with the State Pension.
A person may inherit part or all of their partner's extra State Pension or lump sum if they died while deferring their State Pension or had started claiming it after deferring, reached State Pension age before April 6, 2016, and were married or in the civil partnership when they died.
You can check your State Pension to calculate how much money you will receive on the GOV.UK website.
