By James Rodger

Copyright birminghammail

There are calls for a state pension rule change for older retirees who have loved ones. A new petition on the Parliamentary website has urged the Department for Work and Pensions ( DWP ) to “allow State Pension to be passed to children, long-term partners, and dependents”. It says: “We ask the Government to change State Pension inheritance rules so that individuals can nominate a beneficiary such as their child, long-term cohabiting partner, or carer – or offer them a lump sum – so it is not just a spouse or civil partner inheriting from the pension as at present. “State Pension benefits can only be inherited by a spouse/civil partner. Unmarried partners, adult children, or other dependents are excluded, even if financially dependent. Many may support adult children with disabilities, or are cared for by someone other than a spouse or civil partner. READ MORE UK households told ‘switch lights off’ with epidemic spreading across England “We believe in having a system that recognises real-world relationships and dependency; allowing people to nominate a beneficiary, or offer a lump sum to dependents, could help protect vulnerable loved ones from financial hardship after bereavement.” You need to be over State Pension age to claim extra payments from your husband, wife or civil partner’s State Pension. What you get and how you claim will depend on whether you reached State Pension age before or after 6 April 2016. Contact the Pension Service to check what you can claim. I f you reached State Pension age before 6 April 2016 then y ou’ll get any State Pension based on your husband, wife or civil partner’s National Insurance contribution when you claim your own pension. You will not get it if you remarry or form a new civil partnership before you reach State Pension age. If you reached State Pension age on or after 6 April 2016 then y ou’ll receive the ‘new State Pension’ and you may be able to inherit an extra payment on top of your pension.