Universal Credit down: Users unable to access benefits accounts as gov.uk not working
The Universal Credit page on Gov.uk is down this morning, leaving claimants unable to access essential information about their benefits and entitlement.
Issues began to be reported from around 5am this morning, with users citing issues with Universal Credit, Gov.uk, and HMRC.
People say they are facing issues logging in and using the website as well as the app. Attempting to access the log in page for Universal Credit leads to a 'Service Unavailable' page for many users.
The Universal Credit online service is essential for users to apply for an advance on their first payment, see their statements, report changes in circumstances, add notes to their journal and more.
Users on social media have reported still having issues at around 8:30am on Wednesday, with no update yet from the government or DWP.
Hi @GOVUK , what is wrong with your Universal Credit website?This is the message I received when I tried to log into my account pic.twitter.com/ywNveFCqYz
— GAZZA P (@wetgaz1329) March 5, 2025
DWP has been contacted for comment.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
10 hours ago
- Yahoo
Winter fuel payment changes to unleash ‘chaos' on HMRC
Rachel Reeves's winter fuel payment about-turn could unleash 'chaos' on pensioners and the tax office, experts have warned. Under the new rules, the majority of pensioners will receive the winter fuel allowance but those earning more than £35,000 will have their payment clawed back through the tax system. Experts have said the policy, which will save an estimated £450m a year and cost around £1.25bn, could have unintended consequences such as: The £450m in savings could be wiped out due to the costs of administering the complex system. HMRC could claw back 'the wrong amounts' from pensioners due to out-of-date records. Customer service could suffer and tax dodgers could get off scot-free as HMRC's staff are moved away from regular work. Rachel Vahey, of stockbroker AJ Bell, said claiming back the payment from 25pc of pensioners was 'the most convoluted and difficult' route the Government could have chosen. She added: 'Given the chaos it could cause and the relatively tiny taxpayer savings on offer, it may have made sense for the Government to take the political embarrassment of a U-turn on the chin and make the payment to all pensioners.' Around two million pensioners earn more than £35,000 and will have the winter fuel payment claimed back through the tax system. For pensioners who file a tax return, this will be done via self-assessment. However, most pensioners are taxed through PAYE, which means the payment will be recovered through their tax code. Robert Salter, of accountancy firm Blick Rothenberg, said this could result in pensioners losing the winter fuel payment unfairly due to HMRC's 'out-of-date' records. 'Given that many people subject to the winter fuel payment won't be doing tax returns, there is a real risk that HMRC might be claiming back the wrong amounts – at least in some cases – as they have used the wrong underlying data,' he said. Former pensions minister Ros Altmann said she was also concerned about pensioners getting hit with incorrect bills relating to the winter fuel allowance. 'HMRC often makes mistakes and they warn that everyone needs to check the figures carefully to ensure the tax codes are correct. 'For many of the oldest pensioners, this is likely to be a massive challenge and, especially for those who are not digitally enabled, it could cause significant worry.' The Government's previous experience with means-testing does not bode well for the success of the winter fuel allowance system. Under the high-income child benefit system, which is also means-tested, the benefit is partially withdrawn once a parent earns more than £60,000. This means the parent must either opt out of receiving child benefit or file a tax return and pay it back. Over the years, many parents have been hit with unexpected tax bills because they do not know the rules or do not realise they have earned over the threshold. This has led to HMRC spending valuable time and resources policing the complicated system in order to claw back a relatively small amount of tax. Jon Greer, of wealth manager Quilter, said: 'The Government should learn lessons from the child benefit system and ensure it doesn't bake in unfairness from the outset. Getting that balance right is critical to avoiding the kind of unintended consequences that have plagued other means-tested benefits.' The Department for Work and Pensions has said it will set up a simple system so pensioners over the threshold can opt out of winter fuel payments. But even once this is up and running, there will be some pensioners who do not opt out because they do not realise they have earned more than £35,000 in one year. HMRC said taxpayers could check taxable income quickly and easily in the app or online via their personal tax account. Chancellor Rachel Reeves said the decision to reinstate winter fuel payments meant 'no pensioner on a lower income will miss out'. The about-turn comes as Sir Keir Starmer tries to shore up support from MPs and the public following losses to Reform at the local elections last month. A spokesman for HMRC said: 'No one will need to file a tax return just to pay back a winter fuel payment, and the vast majority will have the charge collected automatically through their tax code. 'HMRC has previous experience of introducing new processes at pace and doing so very successfully.' Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Winter fuel payment scammers already 'targeting pensioners'
Scammers are already targeting pensioners who are hoping to get their winter fuel payments restored, Communities Minister Gordon Lyons has warned. It comes a day after it was confirmed the payments, which the government stopped for millions of pensioners across the UK, have now been reinstated. Lyons told the Northern Ireland Assembly he is aware of a number of "scams in circulation", in which pensioners are being contacted and asked for their banking details. He said it is "disgraceful" that people are "trying to take advantage of pensioners" less than 24 hours after the payments were restored. The minister reminded those who are in line for the payments that the money will be paid out automatically, and there is no need to provide details or fill out application forms. He also reassured assembly members that pensioners in Northern Ireland will receive their payments at the same time as others across the UK. Detailing how the scheme will work, he said legislation will be passed by the end of July that will clear the way for payments to be made before the winter. He stressed there will be no additional cost for the Northern Ireland Executive as the money will be provided from London. He said only those pensioners who earn £35,000 or less will be eligible. On Monday, payments of up to £300 per household for those over 80 and £200 for those under 80 were confirmed for Northern Ireland. In England and Wales, payments will be made to all pensioners before HMRC will recover money from those earning over £35,000 through taxation. Winter Fuel Payments were created in 1997 to help everyone above state pension age with their winter heating bills. The Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, announced last year that winter 2024 would be the first time pensioners in England and Wales would not be eligible for the payment. Northern Ireland was forced to follow suit. Payments were then restricted to those on benefits and pension credit. NI pensioners could have winter fuel payments restored £100 payment to help pensioners with winter fuel cuts Winter fuel payments in NI to be means tested Gordon Lyons calls for return of universal winter fuel payment
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
500,000 more pensioners at risk of losing winter fuel payments under Labour
An extra half a million pensioners could lose their winter fuel payments by the end of the decade, new analysis suggests. Rachel Reeves was forced into a humiliating about-turn on Monday after announcing pensioners with incomes of less than £35,000 a year would be eligible for the benefit. It means an extra 7.5 million pensioners will receive the payment, worth up to £300, this year. But experts point out 500,000 of these will lose the payment by 2030, as rising incomes collide with the payment. Officials at the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) refused to comment on Monday on whether the threshold would be increased in line with inflation or the so-called 'triple lock' each year. Government sources told The Telegraph that no more detail would be provided until the next Budget, when the measure will be evaluated by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR). If the threshold remained the same, more pensioners would become ineligible each year as their annual incomes increased. Sir Steve Webb, former pensions minister and partner at pension consultants LCP, said: 'The Government's own figures clearly suggest that they expect the number of losers from the new policy to rise each year. 'With around two million pensioners currently over the £35,000 threshold, this number could easily rise by another half a million by 2030. 'This could end up being another way in which governments use inflation to quietly raise additional revenue year-by-year.' This is not the only form of fiscal drag faced by taxpayers. The income tax thresholds have been frozen until 2027-2028, which will drag more than one million taxpayers into paying additional rate tax. This phenomenon, known as 'fiscal drag', represents a huge stealth tax raid. Income tax thresholds have been frozen since 2021-22, dragging millions of taxpayers into the income tax net for the first time, or into higher brackets. The additional rate threshold was initially frozen at £150,000 before being reduced to £125,140 in 2023. HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) data via a Freedom of Information request showed that the number of people aged 65 and over paying the top rate of tax more than tripled from 44,000 in 2021-22 to an estimated 137,000 in 2025-26. Sir Steve also questioned the Government's numbers on how much the changed policy would save the Exchequer. He said: 'Our analysis also suggests that the new policy will raise less money next year than the headline figure quoted of £450m. 'Assuming an initial yield of around £350m, roughly two thirds of this will be wiped out by higher pension credit costs. The net revenue from the policy is likely to end up barely a tenth of the amount banked by the Chancellor when she presented her last Budget.' While the Government said that the policy measure would save £450m, it also said that it expected to spend £1.25bn on the payments. Adding the figures together, this would have meant a total saving of £1.7bn if the Chancellor had not reversed the policy. But figures published in last year's Budget suggest that the first time the policy came close to raising £1.7bn was in 2029-2030. In the House of Commons on Monday, shadow secretary for work and pensions, Helen Whatley, said that the policy would save as little as £50m. She added: 'After all this, the savings for the Treasury this coming year may be as little as £50m.' Ms Whatley described the about-turn as 'the most humiliating climbdown a Government has ever faced in its first year in office'. The Treasury was contacted for comment. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
