Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate she has made of the number of confirmations of pension credit non-entitlement that were given over the phone in the last 12 months; and of those confirmations how many were given the option of mandatory reconsideration.

DWP does not provide notifications of Pension Credit entitlement, or non-entitlement, by telephone as all decisions are provided to customers by letter. In the instances when a Pension Credit application is unsuccessful, the decision letter explains how the customer can request a mandatory reconsideration from the Department if they disagree with the decision.

Decisions about Pension Credit entitlement are made by decision makers of the Department for Work and Pensions acting on behalf of the Secretary of State and not by external agencies. Decisions about Pension Credit entitlement are notified in writing and claimants are given written notice of their rights of appeal.

The information is not available in the instances when a Pension Credit application is unsuccessful, the decision letter explains how the customer can request a mandatory reconsideration if they disagree with the decision.