One in six pensioners would feel embarrassed to tell their family about applying for pension credit to top up their income, new research reveals.

More than half of people aged over 66 also don't like to ask for support or help from their friends or relatives even if they need it, according to the survey by Royal London.

Pension credit boosts weekly income to a minimum of £218.15 for single people and £332.95 for couples, and gains you access to a lot of additional help with bills.

Crucially, that includes keeping the Winter Fuel Payment, which is worth from £100 to £300 a year, if you claim by the cut-off date of 21 December.

The Government announced in the summer these payments would be means-tested in future, sparking an outcry from charities and campaigners for the elderly like Ros Altmann.

Claiming pension credit: Find out how to top up your weekly income below

Royal London found that among older people who have found out they qualify for pension credit, 11 per cent are yet to apply and only 2 per cent intend to do so before the deadline to get the Winter Fuel Payment.

This shows there is a real hesitancy for pensioners to go through the pension credit application process, says the firm.

Succession star Brian Cox is currently leading a celebrity campaign urging hard-up pensioners to claim.

He is being joined by film and TV actor Jane Asher and Sue Holderness, who played Marlene in sitcom Only Fools and Horses, in the initiative by national charity Independent Age.

Royal London, which is running its own campaign under the banner Take The Credit, surveyed more than 1,200 people aged over 66 from every region of the UK over the past month about their attitudes to pension credit and other issues. It found:

- More than a third find asking for help uncomfortable

- One in 10 believe there are people who need more financial help than they do

- Almost a third of those on a low income - those earning less than the threshold for pension credit - haven’t yet checked if they qualify

- Some 16 per cent would be more likely to apply if it wasn't described as a benefit

STEVE WEBB ANSWERS YOUR PENSION QUESTIONS

       

- The same percentage said they would feel embarrassed to tell friends and family if they were to apply for pension credit.

'Too many pensioners – approximately three quarters of a million - are still missing out on this financial support,' says Sarah Pennells, consumer finance specialist at Royal London.

'Some of the main reasons people miss out on pension credit are because they don’t think they would qualify, or they don’t check because they feel too ashamed to admit they need extra help.

'We need to spread the message that there is no shame in accepting help that is available.

'Times have been hard in recent years so it’s important that we come together and encourage pensioners, whether they be family, friends or neighbours, to look into all the options of support that might be available.'

How to apply for pension credit and where to get help with claims

If you are elderly and not well off, pension credit tops up weekly income to a minimum of £218.15 for single people and £332.95 for couples.

On average it is worth around £4,000 a year on its own, but pension credit also opens the door to a lot of additional help with household bills.

You can gain thousands of pounds on top including help with housing costs, heating, council tax, TV licences if you are over 75, and other bills.

Find out more about pension credit here and about the rules on who is eligible here.

You can apply yourself by phone on 0800 99 1234, claim pension credit online or get a form to do it by post.

A friend or family member can apply on behalf of an elderly person.

In Scotland, a new Pension Age Winter Heating Payment will eventually replace the Winter Fuel Payment.

But for this winter, people over state pension age who qualify will receive a payment in line with the Winter Fuel Payment, and this will be means-tested. Check here if you live in Scotland and here for Northern Ireland.

Independent Age, a charity focused on improving the lives of older people in financial hardship, offers help on its free phoneline 0800 319 6789.

 Advisers from the charity carry out welfare benefit checks to ensure callers are accessing all available support, including pension credit and the Winter Fuel Payment.

Age UK staff provide help with applications. Any older person struggling with bills, or friends and family who are concerned about them, can call 0800 169 6565.

This line is open every day of the year between 8am and 7pm, or you can visit Age UK's help page here.

It also has a free, anonymous benefits calculator which can provide an estimate of what you could be entitled to if you want to find out this information privately.

Age UK says the three groups likely to be hardest hit by means-testing of the Winter Fuel Payment are those whose incomes are slightly too high to get pension credit, people who could claim it but do not - usually a third of those eligible - and ill or disabled people with high energy needs.

What does the DWP say?

'We want to ensure all pensioners get the support they’re entitled to, which is why we are deploying over 500 extra staff to process the expected increase in claims,' says a spokesperson for the Department for Work and Pensions.

'Our pension credit campaign has also been successful in boosting applications by 152 per cent.

'Successful claims for pension credit can be backdated by three months, so all eligible claims made by 21 December would also receive a Winter Fuel Payment as well as arrears of pension credit.

'We continue to urge anyone who thinks they may be entitled to pension credit to check now.'