Q We are in our seventies with weekly State Pensions of £132 and £58. We have £8,000 in savings. Should we be paying council tax of £106 a month?

A No. You appear to be entitled to pension Credit of about £10.73 a week and Council Tax Benefit that would reduce your council tax to about £17 a month. Claim Pension Credit by phoning 0800 99 1234 and Council Tax Benefit from your council.

Q I am a widow of 66 with a State Pension of £86.03 a week plus £5.81 Pension Credit. I have savings of £20,000. Am I entitled to any help with my council tax of £76 a month?

A People with savings of more than £16,000 can only get Council Tax Benefit if they qualify for Guarantee Pension Credit. You do not qualify for this because your weekly income is assessed as more than £109.45 (£20,000 savings count as £28 a week income). Therefore, you must pay council tax in full. The Pension Credit you qualify for is Savings Credit, but that should be £14.61, not £5.81, so query it.

Q Soon, my husband's weekly Incapacity Benefit of £76.45 will be replaced by a State Pension of £150.24 and my State Pension of £57.15 will increase to £63.63. He also has a £7.92-a-week works pension. What will happen to our Pension Credit of £48.30 a week, my Carer's Allowance of £3.03 and our council tax that we do not currently have to pay?

A Your Pension Credit will reduce to about £10 a week and you will lose your Carer's Allowance because of your pension rise. Also, you will have to start paying council tax of about £180 a year.

Q At 69, I am thinking of remarrying. I have £95.49 a week in State Pension, £22.03 Pension Credit, £2,400 savings and pay no rent or council tax. My wife-to-be has a State Pension of £120.25 a week and £55,000 savings. What would be the benefit situation if we married?

A Neither of you would qualify for Pension Credit or rent/council tax rebates.