Waspi women denied compensation after state pension age changes

Women born in the 1950s who missed out on state pension payments will not receive compensation, despite a report which urged the government to "do the right thing" for them.

It follows a campaign by the Women Against State Pension Inequality (Waspi) who claim 3.6 million women born in the 1950s were "not properly informed" of a rise to the state pension age to bring them into line with men, said the BBC.

Work and pensions secretary Liz Kendall apologised for a "28-month delay in sending letters" to those affected, but rejected outright the idea of any form of financial payout.

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While the government previously promised to "right historic wrongs" when they were in opposition, compensation has now been ruled out, The Telegraph said.

Who are the Waspi women?

The Waspi campaign is "fighting for justice for all women born in the 1950s" who were hit by changes to the women's state pension age, which increased from 60 to 68 between 2010 and 2018 to align with men's state pension age.

The group insists the age alteration was implemented with "little notice", said MoneyWeek, consequently "leaving many in financial turmoil".

Women affected by the state pension decision took their complaint to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO), and were told the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) did not adequately inform thousands of women that their state pension age had changed.

The result was that women "lost opportunities" to make informed decisions about their retirement, impacting their "personal autonomy and financial control", the report stated.

However, the Labour government has now "rejected" the ombudsman's findings, suggesting most women knew the state pension age was about to change, and that "sending a letter earlier" would not have affected "whether women knew their state pension age was rising", said The Telegraph.

Waspi estimates that almost four million women were affected by the changes. Many of those affected claim they "had no idea" they would need to wait longer to receive their state pension, and "suffered financial and emotional distress as a result", said the BBC. Some women claimed they received no notice at all.

What has the reaction been to the Waspi decision?

The decision marks a "day of shame for the government" said the Liberal Democrats, who accused the government of having "turned its back on millions of pension-age women".

Angela Madden, chair of Waspi, told the Independent the decision was a "bizarre and totally unjustified move" given the ombudsman's findings, and that the conclusion "would make the likes of Boris Johnson and Donald Trump blush".

But while Labour have "shamelessly betrayed" Waspi women, ultimately, it was the "right thing to do", said The Telegraph's Ben Wilkinson, as the "vast majority" knew about the scheduled changes. While assurances of compensation for these women may have been easy to make in opposition, "in power, our leaders have been forced to admit their promises were all a fantasy".

What next for Waspi women?

Kendall has "abruptly silenced nearly a decade of campaigning", said The Telegraph's Wilkinson, "extinguishing any hope" that 1950s-born women may have had for future compensation.

The Waspi campaign previously called for "compensation of at least £10,000", a level 6 payout based on PHSO compensation scales, said Rest Less.

However, the report ultimately suggested a level 4 amount – between £1,000 and £2,950 per victim. This, in addition to the apology, would cover the "shambolic handling" of the pension age rise, said the Mirror.

However, the report by the PHSO only served as a recommendation, and the ombudsman "could not enforce it", said the BBC. Kendall said "lessons would be learnt" from the situation, and an "action plan" developed to fix any problems which may arise in the future.

With no compensation available, Waspi women were provided with assurance from the government that the pensions triple lock would receive protection to ensure an increase by up to £1,900 per year by the end of the current Parliament.

Previously, Waspi campaign chair Madden said the group was "not scared of taking legal action" should the government renege on promises to introduce a compensation scheme.