Your state pension forecast: how to understand it and fix shortfalls

If you are under state pension age, one very practical thing that you can do at the start of 2020 is obtain a state pension forecast. There were big changes in April 2016 and it is therefore worth understanding your rights under the new system, including the potential to top up at very favourable rates.

You can get a state pension forecast almost instantaneously online, although you can also get one in the post if you prefer. If you visit the gov.uk website (gov.uk/check-state-pension) and satisfy the necessary security checks, you will be taken to a web page that provides full details of your national insurance history. It will also give you two figures for your state pension – one is the amount you have already built up, and the other is the maximum amount you could get.