Cuts to heap for suffering bereaved families

The new system will apply to all new claims made by widows or widowers from April 6. Johnny Timpson, protection specialist at Scottish Widows, warned that families could end up worse off as a result.

“Older claimants and bereaved parents with dependants will receive less overall,” he said.

Under the changes, widowed parent’s allowance, based on the national insurance (NI) contributions a spouse made before they died, will be replaced by a new support payment.

The average claimant gets around £29,000 over a “support period” of up to 20 years, with a possible maximum of £119,050 for those with very young children.

But the new system will reduce the support period to 18 months and pay a maximum of just £9,800. Timpson said nine out of 10 widowed parents will get less support.

“Many families may face a significant financial struggle in the event of an unexpected loss of income due to serious illness or death.”

Steve Webb, director of policy at insurer Royal London, explained cohabiting couples cannot claim, despite paying in the same NI contributions as married couples.

“This cannot be justified, especially where children are involved,” he said. Stephen Crosbie, protection director at Aegon, said families still needed to take out life insurance.

“The bereavement support payment is unlikely to provide the financial support needed to maintain your current standard of living should you lose income from the main breadwinner.”

Visit Your Money online at www.express.co.uk/money