ESA

Thanks Gordon. We spoke to a helpful person at Dept for Work and Pensions and she says that if we formally request the 'pie breaker', they are then obliged to look beneath the crust which is 2014/15. This years NI is up to date and the previous 30+ years are all up to date, so if the process compels them to reassess against any other year, the problem will be resolved. I'll let you know the outcome.

Ray, I don't know if this is a bit late or if you will see this now (I had just come to search for something else and chanced upon your post), but I was in a similar position to your wife, in that one of the two years of NI contributions that were being looked at for my claim of Contribution-based ESA were incomplete.

In my case I was self employed and already ill and with reduced capacity and earnings, but stupidly not claiming anything. I didn't pay my NI contributions bill that year somehow.

I had already started an ESA claim when I discovered this was the case.

DWP were happy for me to pay the missing contributions up to HRMC, and as soon as that was registered on my account the ESA claim was reviewed and I received a letter confirming that I was now being paid the assessment rate.

From what I read your wife was possibly employed at the time? But I thought I'd post just in case she was self employed, as she *should* be able to go back and set things things right. I've no idea if there is a similar mechanism for people who were at the time employed, but it would be worth asking HRMC maybe?