People 'urged' to check if they're owed an average of 3,800 for simple mistake

Thousands of elderly Britons are being encouraged to verify whether they're entitled to money from HMRC worth approximately £3,800 on average.

You could be entitled to a refund from the tax authority if you were subjected to emergency tax after accessing your pension for the first time. Recent data reveals HMRC returned £48.7million in excessive pension tax between April 1 and June 30.

In total, 12,767 claims were handled, with an average payout of £3,815. You face the risk of emergency tax charges if HMRC assumes your initial pension withdrawal will be repeated monthly - regardless of whether you make additional withdrawals during that tax year.

Following pension freedom legislation introduced in 2015, you can typically take up to 25 per cent of your pension tax-free from age 55,