The DWP is chasing thousands of pensioners to repay more than £100million in state pension overpayments caused by official errors – and it’s now warning more could be on the way
James Rodger Content Editor
11:45, 21 Oct 2025
State pensioners are being warned as retirees could face staggering demands(Image: Jacob Wackerhausen via Getty Images)
State pensioners are being warned as retirees could face staggering demands for repayment of £100 million following an error by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). The DWP is pursuing thousands of pensioners to repay over £100 million in state pension overpayments, which were caused by official mistakes.
Data indicates that state pension overpayments have increased by £89 million in the past year alone, with an estimated 220,000 individuals likely to be impacted. Despite the error originating from the DWP, only £3 million of pensioner debt resulting from government mistakes was written off in the last fiscal year. Charities have accused the DWP of being “on shaky legal ground” in its demands for money back from pensioners.
According to GB News, the DWP is “actively seeking to recover the funds from more than 220,000 affected pensioners across the country”. Charities informed The i Paper that the department was “on shaky legal ground in demanding repayments of state pensions or benefits caused by its own incompetence”, reports Birmingham Live.
A spokesperson for the DWP stated that the department was “determined to tackle fraud, error and debt”, and that it aims to recover £1.5 billion over the next five years. Citizens Advice has said that many claimants receive little explanation, and that the DWP “provides very little information, especially in cases of historic overpayments”.
In June, Lord Davies of Brixton warned that “the constant scanning of accounts” would increase the risk of false positives, and “may incur further privacy intrusion – let alone penalties”.
The National Audit Office (NAO) estimates that approximately 200,000 pensioners, predominantly widows and women entitled to higher rates, are owed £1.5bn due to historical calculation errors.
A spokesperson for the DWP stated: “We are determined to tackle fraud, error and debt, and through our Fraud, Error and Recovery Bill, we are bringing forward the biggest crackdown in a generation.
“Thanks to our reforms, we will save the taxpayer £1.5bn over the next five years, as part of wider plans that will save £9.6bn by 2030.”