The number of individuals accessing their new state pension statements has increased by 40% in the last 6 months, according to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).

This is an increase from last year where there were 400,000 requests made.

People over the age of 18 can access their state pension information through an online checking service. This provides an estimate of how much a person may receive when they reach state pension age based on their national insurance contributions.

The online service was launched on 12 February 2016 and since then it has received 300,000 unique visits.

Individuals aged 50 or over can use the service online or request a paper statement from DWP.

Pensions minister Baroness Ros Altmann, said:

“Once you understand how much state pension you might receive, you will be better able to plan your later life income.

“Through our pensions reforms we want to create a better culture of saving which is why we have introduced automatic enrolment that will help people supplement their state pension and we are providing more opportunities to save for retirement.”