DWP state pension: The pensioner payments not rising by 4.1% from April. Older Brits should bear in mind that not all elements of the state pension are increased as part of the triple lock.

Note: This appeared in the Daily Mirror and was written by Ruby Flanagen, Money Reporter.

Pensioners are set to see state pension payments rise from next month - but not all of them will be rising by 4.1%.

Under the Triple Lock promise, the state pension will rise each April by either inflation (based on the previous September's figure), wage growth (the average increase between May and July), or 2.5% - whichever is the highest. The Chancellor confirmed last year that it would rise by wage growth which sat at 4.1%. The rise will be seen by pensioners from Monday, April 10 - which is the first full week of the new tax year.

However, older Brits should bear in mind that not all elements of the state pension are increased as part of the triple lock. These elements will instead rise by 1.7% which was the rate of inflation in September 2024. This is how much other Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) benefits are rising.

The other elements of the state pension do not apply to everyone and who gets them depends on your age, marital status, National Insurance record and whether you deferred your pension payments. Here we explain everything you need to know, including who gets these elements and how much they are rising by next month.

New state pension

The full new state pension rate for people who reached state pension age from April 2016 onwards is going to rise 4.1% from April. Specifically, this pension is paid to men born on or after April 6, 1951, or women born on or after April 6, 1953. The weekly rate will rise from £221.40 to £230.20, so yearly this will rise from £11,502 to £11,975 - overall this equates to £470 a year.

To get the full amount, as well as being the required age of 66, you must have made National Insurance contributions during your working life, have bought voluntary National Insurance top-ups, or received credits from the government for years spent caring for other issues. For the new state pension, most people need 35 qualifying years on their National Insurance record to receive the full amount, and typically ten years to get anything at all.

Basic rate state pension

The basic rate state pension is paid to men who were born before April 6, 1951, and women born before April 6, 1953. Currently, this pension is worth £169.50 per week, or £8,814 a year. This pension will increase by 4.1% from April with weekly payments rising to £176.45, and £9,175 annually.

Additional, Serps or State Second Pension

Many people on the basic rate also get top-ups, called additional state pension which is also known as State Earnings-Related Pension Scheme (SERPS) and State Second Pension,

SERPS was introduced in 1978 as a top-up to the basic state pension. The amount you’d receive from SERPS was related to your contributions during your working life, and you’d only be eligible for the scheme if you were an employee making Class 1 National Insurance Contributions. Self-employed people were not eligible for SERPS. In April 2002, SERPS was replaced by the State Second Pension. This element of the state pension will rise according by the rate of inflation at 1.7% from April.

Protected Payment

If you reached state pension age after April 2016, but had already built up enough additional state pension, S2P or Serps to qualify for more than the headline flat rate earlier in your working life, you will receive the difference between the two on top. This is called your "Protected Payment", and each year, this rises in line with inflation - so this year, it will go up by 1.7%.

Deferred new state pension

Normally, you start to receive your state pension when you reach state pension age which at the moment is 66 years old. Although, you do not get it automatically. Instead, you receive an invitation letter from the Pensions Service four months beforehand inviting you to make a claim. The letter will also tell you how you can do that.

If you don't want to claim it yet, you can hold off, and this is called a "pension deferral". According to Gov.uk, if you want to defer, you do not have to do anything. Your pension will automatically be deferred until you claim it. Deferring your state pension could also increase the payments you get when you decide to claim it -

If you reach state pension age on or after April, 6 2016 your payments will increase every week you defer, as long as you defer for at least nine weeks. Your payments will increase by around 1% for every nine weeks you defe,r which works out at just under 5.8% for each year. You'll get this increase in higher weekly payments. The extra sum you get for deferring your stare pension will not overall increase by 4.1% - instead, it will increase by the inflation at 1.7%.

Inherited old state pension

Some widowed spouses and civil partners can inherit state pensions. If you were married to your spouse or civil partner before April 6 2016, you may be able to inherit up to half of your partner’s additional state pension or protected payment. If the partner delayed or stopped taking their state pension, you may also be able to inherit part or all the extra state pension or lump sum they had built up.

However, this depends on when the surviving partner reaches or has passed state pension age, their spouse's date of birth, and their National Insurance record. If you have inherited a portion of a spouse or civil partner's state pension since April 2016, this will increase by 1.7% If you inherited their basic state pension dating from before 2016, it will go up by 4.1%

Married women's state pension

This pension is known as "Category B (lower) basic pension and what you get is dependent on the contributions paid by a spouse or civil partner. Under the plan, married women who reached state pension age before April 2016 and receive less than 60% of their husband's basic state pension are entitled to a boost up to that 60%. This amount will rise by 4.1% from £101.55 a week to £105.70.

Over-80s state pension

The over 80 pension is a State Pension for people aged 80 or over. To be eligible, you must get either a basic State Pension of less than £101.55 a week or no basic State Pension at all. Under the state pension, this is known as a "Category D" pension and this will rise by 4.1% in April to £105.70. If you are already on more than that, it isn't paid extra on top. The over-80s additional payment is frozen again at 25p.

Graduated Retirement Benefit is an extra state pension payment that tops up your basic pension. You usually get it if you paid graduated contributions on your earnings between 1961 and 1975 as part of the graduated pension scheme. It was the forerunner to Additional, SERPS or State Second Pension. If your state pension includes it, this part of your payment will rise by 1.7% in April.

Christmas bonus

The Government pays out the automatic tax-free "Christmas Bonus" to millions on benefits each year including state pensioners with the cash reaching bank accounts by December 25. The bonus is designed to help cover additional costs associated with Christmas.

The one-off, bonus was first introduced as part of the Pensioners’ and Family Income Supplement Payments Act in 1972. The bonus was originally set at £10 and it has remained at that level ever since - except in 2008, when it was temporarily increased to £70 to support people during the financial crash. This will not be rising alongside the state pension and will remain at £10.