Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people (a) chose to defer their state pension and (b) claimed an arears payment after 12 months in the most recent 12-month period for which data are available.

The Department does not know that a person has deferred until they submit a claim for their State Pension.

This means it is not possible to identify the total number of people who are deferring at any point in time, the average length of deferral or the numbers of claimants who receive the value of their deferred pension before they pass away.

Deferring entitlement to the State Pension is a personal choice based on an individual’s circumstances. It is the claimant’s responsibility to decide when to claim, including whether to defer it. Whether deferring a claim to the State Pension is the right decision will depend on a range of factors including, for example, length of deferral, employment, dependents, tax position before and after claiming the State Pension, and entitlement to other benefits.

Deferring can affect the amount and timing of payment, and this is a decision only the claimant can make. Individuals are signposted to deferral information on the Government website when they are invited to claim their State Pension; and an invitation to claim letter is issued up to four months prior to a customer reaching State Pension age.

The Department encourages people to seek independent financial advice before making a decision to defer their State Pension and this is set out at: www.gov.uk/plan-retirement-income/get-financial-advice.