An Aberdeenshire woman who has been forced to cash in on her private pension after a national insurance bungle is still battling to get her money back – five months on.
Elizabeth Harper has been unable to collect her state pension since January after an identity mix-up.
But despite being assured by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) that she would be getting her money back in March, yesterday she received a letter from Revenue and Customs telling her to start the process again.
In the meantime, the 63-year-old, of Alford, has been forced to dip into a private pension as well while her husband takes on extra work to pay the bills.
Mrs Harper, of Alford, said: “Revenue and Customs (HMRC) have sent me this letter basically wanting me to start again; I’ve got to give my full name and any others I have used, my last three home addresses, all my employers since 2010, my pension provider since 2010 and national insurance information, I mean it’s just ridiculous.
“I’ve had to cash in my private pension and my husband is doing extra work to help out, but I must be owed between £4,000 and £5,000 now – this can only go on for a few months more before it becomes very difficult for us to keep paying our bills.”
Mrs Harper said she was “frustrated” by the whole experience, adding: “I really just don’t know what to do anymore – I think they have just forgotten that this is my pension they are messing around with – I rely on that money.
“This whole thing has been handled so poorly, I speak to one person at DWP but then they can’t speak to the tax office and it just becomes so exasperating.”
A DWP spokesman said: “We have been in contact with Mrs Harper to let her know that we have now received the information required from HMRC to process her claim for State Pension.
“This issue was caused due to an error by Mrs Harper’s former employer and we have worked closely with HMRC to resolve the case.”
The spokesman also claimed that Ms Harper would be paid immediately.