State pension age changes explained as some pensioners left waiting 11 months for payment after turning 66 - 'so unfair'

Steve Webb, pensions expert and partner at LCP explained what is changing for those who are affected after a reader expressed concerns about having to wait an extra year for his state pension.

The email said: "I will be 66 on April 1, 2026. Under the changes that the Government are about to make will I get my pension or will I have to wait another year?

"I have paid in an extra nine years over what you have to pay in, which is 35 years according to the Government website. I like many others find this so unfair."

Webb clarified that the reader will narrowly avoid the increase, stating: "In short, state pension age will only rise for those who reach age 66 after April 5, 2026, which means you avoid any increase by a matter of days."

The pensions expert explained to This is Money that the state pension age change from 66 to 67 is not abrupt but will instead happen in stages.

Webb elaborated: "This means that some people will become entitled to a pension when they reach 66 years and 1 month, some at 66 years and 2 months and so on.

"A further increase from 67 to 68 is currently scheduled to take place between April 2044 and March 2046, though it is quite possible that this schedule will be accelerated."

To illustrate the gradual increase in state pension age, Webb referred to the Pensions Act 2014, Section 26 which outlines the specific ages at which individuals become eligible for their state pension based on their birth dates.

For those born between April 6, 1960, and May 5, 1960, the pension age is 66 years and 1 month. This increases by one month for each subsequent birth month.

From February 6, 1961, to March 5, 1961, the pension age reaches 66 years and 11 months.

Anyone born after March 5, 1961, will have a pension age of at least 67.

Webb advised readers to check their specific state pension age using the official Government tool at Gov.uk.

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These changes will affect the normal minimum pension age (NMPA) for accessing private pensions, which will increase from 55 to 57 on April 6, 2028.

Addressing the reader's concern about contributing for more than 35 years, Webb explained that the National Insurance system differs from a private pension fund.

He said: "National Insurance is more like a tax where you pay in according to your means and get a payment out according to the rules in force at the time.

"There is inevitably an element of redistribution in such a system with those who have long working lives (such as yourself) and/or higher earnings paying in more."

This redistribution helps fund NI credits for those unable to contribute directly, such as carers.

He also pointed out that some individuals may have paid lower "contracted out" rates in the past, affecting their state pension despite contributing for more than 35 years.