Opinion: excessive red tape risks robbing the elderly of a vital financial lifeline

I’m a money writer and it took me 3 hours to help my mother apply for pension benefits. What hope do others have?

Following the Government’s decision to axe Winter Fuel Payments for millions of pensioners, there are understandably concerns about how vulnerable older people will manage this shortfall.

Applying for age-related state benefits such as Pension Credit and Attendance Allowance is, in theory, one option.

The former is intended to bring all pensioners up to a basic income – currently £201.05 for single people and £306.85 for couples – and the latter is a disability benefit for those over State Pension age.

If the application for Pension Credit is successful, retirees also become eligible for Winter Fuel Payments, worth up to £300 a year.

In effect, Pension Credit acts as a gateway for other support.

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A 22-page application

Sadly, claiming age-related benefits is rarely straightforward.

In fact, The Telegraph reported this week that the 22-page Pension Credit claim form is discouraging some older people from applying.

Indeed, the Government’s own figures reveal that just 63% of eligible households receive the benefit.

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An exhausting three hours

These figures don’t surprise me at all.

Around five years ago, I helped my mum, who has since passed away, with her Attendance Allowance application.

Even with over 15 years of experience as a personal finance journalist, I found the form extremely long-winded.

In fact, it took me over three hours to complete the application. Although there were accompanying notes, they just felt like another mound of paperwork to sift through.

I remember feeling mentally drained afterwards and joking to my mum that I’d need several large glasses of wine to recover.

But seriously, if I struggled with the form, and I write about the benefits system for a living, how was my mum expected to manage?

By her eighties, she was suffering from severe epilepsy and had lost most of her central vision due to a genetic condition.

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‘I’d have given up...’

After we’d filled in the form, she told me that she would have given up on her application – and forfeited money that she was entitled to – without my help.

Since my family is very far from wealthy, abandoning the claim would have meant losing funds she needed to help her manage her condition.

It seems the process has not gotten any simpler over the past half-decade.

The current form is 30 pages long and also requires a supplementary statement from someone who knows the claimant.

On top of this, the applicant will need to send supporting medical documentation, which can also cause difficulties.

Although a consultant at the eye hospital had explained my mum’s condition, we’d never received a written diagnosis.

If an older person were to give up on their Attendance Allowance claim today, this could mean losing £72.65 or £108.55 per week, depending on the level of support they need.

Open to interpretation

One problem is that many questions feel open to interpretation, which may leave some applicants uncertain how to answer truthfully.

For instance, the current Attendance Allowance form asks whether the person claiming has difficulty in choosing appropriate clothes to wear. With deteriorating vision, my mum struggled to tell one item of clothing from another.

However, the question could also imply that she wouldn’t have understood what was suitable to wear in specific situations, which certainly wasn’t the case.

Many people with chronic health conditions also have good and bad days – feeling relatively well one day and seriously ill the next.

Again, this can cause doubt over how to answer questions regarding the amount of support they need on a day-to-day basis.

I raised this point with a benefits adviser a few years ago who told me that she advises people to complete claim forms from the perspective of their worst day.

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Charities are plugging the gap

Thankfully, there are charities that help people complete benefit forms, including Age UK, Mind and Citizens Advice.

Although these bodies provide invaluable support, it shouldn’t be their responsibility to help vulnerable people wade through impenetrable Government forms.

These organisations have limited resources, which could be put to better use through initiatives such as befriending schemes for lonely people.

Even more concerning, it seems like the situation will only get worse.

Indeed, restricting Winter Fuel Payments to those receiving Pension Credit and other means-tested benefits could cause a sudden rush in new applications.

Inevitably, this would place further demand on already strained charities and Government helplines.

What’s the solution?

Of course, I understand the need to be thorough when making decisions about public funds. However, the current pile of red tape prevents potentially vulnerable people from accessing financial support.

So, what’s the answer? It goes without saying that there is no easy solution.

However, having meaningful conversations with benefits advisers from charities is crucial.

As the people on the ground dealing with claimants’ questions, these advisers can give the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) honest feedback on the biggest stumbling blocks in its paperwork.

Speaking to The Telegraph, pension commentator Steve Webb also recommended a streamlined process where people only need to provide key information once.

For instance, if someone has already given their details to the council as part of a Housing Benefit claim, they shouldn’t need to provide the same information to the DWP when applying for Pension Credit.

One thing is certain: the process for claiming pensioner benefits needs to be simpler, and with an ageing population, this should be an urgent priority for the new Government.

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Have your say

Do you agree that the benefits system should be more straightforward for older people? Perhaps you have experienced emotional or financial distress caused by confusing application forms?

 We’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below.