This is a major and recently confirmed correction. HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) has officially fixed a nine-year glitch in its online State Pension forecast tool.
The error led approximately 800,000 people to believe they were on track for a higher State Pension than they actually were, potentially causing them to miss opportunities to top up their National Insurance (NI) contributions.
Here is the breakdown of what happened, who is affected, and what you need to do.
1. What was the error?
The online “Check your State Pension” tool, launched in 2016, failed to account for “Contracted Out” years for a specific group of people.
The Glitch: The tool incorrectly told users they were on track to receive the full new State Pension and did not need to make any more NI contributions.
The Reality: In reality, deductions should have been made for the years they were “contracted out” (paid into a private pension instead of the State Second Pension/SERPS). Because the tool ignored these deductions, it gave an inflated forecast.
2. Who was affected?
You are likely part of the affected group if you meet both of these criteria:
You are due to reach State Pension age after April 2029.
You were contracted out of the State Pension (common for public sector workers, teachers, NHS staff, and many large private company schemes) at some point in your career.
Note: A similar error for those retiring before April 2029 was fixed previously. This specific fix addresses the remaining “younger” cohort.
Also Read : Error Loading Addon CB646A50_Get Does Not Exist
3. The “Rectification” (What HMRC is doing)
HMRC has apologized and implemented a software fix as of February 13, 2026.
Frozen Rates for Top-Ups: Crucially, HMRC has confirmed that if you were misled by this error, you will be allowed to buy back missing National Insurance years at the old rates that applied when you should have paid them, rather than the higher current rates. This effectively saves you money if you need to plug gaps.
4. What you need to do now
If you rely on the online forecast for your retirement planning, you must re-check it immediately.
Log in to Government Gateway: Go to gov.uk/check-state-pension.
Generate a New Forecast: Do not rely on screenshots or printouts from before February 14, 2026.
Check for “COPE”: Look for the “Contracted Out Pension Equivalent” (COPE) estimate on your forecast. If this figure has changed or now appears where it didn’t before, your previous forecast was likely wrong.
Important distinction:
This is separate from the “Home Responsibilities Protection” (HRP) error, which affects women who took time off for childcare between 1978 and 2010.
That is a different investigation currently seeing thousands of people receive back-payments. The error fixed this week is purely about the online forecast tool’s software.
Be the first to comment