Charities in plea over unclaimed benefits

The 27 charities, which include Citizens Advice, Save the Children and Age Concern and Help the Aged, said more than 16bn of means-tested benefits and tax credits goes unclaimed each year.

In a letter to Work and Pensions Secretary Yvette Cooper, the groups called on the Government to do more to ensure money earmarked for the children, families and pensioners in greatest need reached them.

They said as many as four out of five low-paid workers without children were missing out on tax credits worth at least 38 a week, while half of working households entitled to housing benefit, worth an average of 37.60 a week, do not claim it.

Up to three million households are also thought to be missing out on council tax benefit, while as many as 1.7 million pensioners are thought not to be claiming the pensions credit, which would boost their income by an average of 31 a week.

Take up of housing benefit and council tax benefit have both fallen during the past decade, while take up of child tax credit is lower in London than other parts of the country and is around 10 per cent lower among people from ethnic minorities.

David Harker, chief executive of Citizens Advice, said: "The Government has made a serious commitment to eradicate child and pensioner poverty, and to help the working poor, yet up to 10.5bn of means tested benefits and 6.2bn of tax credits remain unpaid each year.

"This is bad news at any time, but it's especially worrying when so many are still feeling the impact of the recent recession.

"It's absolutely vital that the Government sets ambitious take-up targets for means-tested benefits and tax credits as an important step towards tackling poverty and providing adequate incomes for all."

He said the benefits and tax credit system was extremely complicated, and the reasons people did not claim what they were due ranged from not knowing about the benefit, to being daunted by the process, to thinking the amount they gained would be negligible.

He said Citizens Advice Bureaux dealt with 8,000 new benefit inquiries each working day and could help people navigate the claims process. A Department for Work and Pensions spokesman said: "We want to make sure everyone is getting the help that they're entitled to.

"We've made it more simple to claim Pension Credit, Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit together in just one free phonecall. We make 13,000 home visits every week to ensure that vulnerable pensioners are getting the help they need."