State Pension Age Change

[reheat module]

Just seen the announcement that the age for a State Pension will be changed from 67 to 68 as of 2037; - this being a full 7yrs earlier than previously envisaged.
A little bit of simple math from your arrival date on the planet should let you know if you're safe, or affected by this change.
Another saving down the line, being paid for by the youth to mid age group.
Absolutely clear statement to ensure full provision is made for personal financial security wherever possible.
At this rate people will be waiting for the Postman to deliver their Telegram from the Queen before they have to catch the bus for work...

[zero_gravity]

Not only that , but if your partner is in the present 60-65 age group she will have been deprived of £ 30-35 K by the time she receives her pension , 5-6 years later than she was entitled to.[Your pension is an entitlement not a state benefit ]

There are 2.5 million women left without their pension entitlement in this way.
That's 7.5Billion pounds which will have been has snaffled away by 2019!

I wonder where it all went ?

See WASPI for details and how to register your opinion !

[Sussex to Devon]

Hi,

Also this talk about a flat pension is not totally true. It is dependant on how many years contributions and how much from year 2016. Most will end up with less than the quoted state pension. Reading the NI contribution site on pensions was a nightmare.

[Malcolm]

Not only that , but if your partner is in the present 60-65 age group she will have been deprived of £ 30-35 K by the time she receives her pension , 5-6 years later than she was entitled to.[Your pension is an entitlement not a state benefit ]

There are 2.5 million women left without their pension entitlement in this way.
That's 7.5Billion pounds which will have been has snaffled away by 2019!

I wonder where it all went ?

See WASPI for details and how to register your opinion !

WASPI are a bunch of money grabbing sexist ageist idiots that should be ignored.

They want a state retirement age of 60 far all women born on or before 31 Dec 1959. They are 'happy' to ignore a woman born 1 day later who has a retirement age of 66. They're also happy to allow all men to work till 66 regardless of their age.

The WASPI women had 20 years notice of the equilisation of mens and womens state pension ages at 65 years old - the proposals were first published in 1993, and passed into law in the 1995 pensions act and came into affect starting in 2016. Their objection appears to be that they didn't get an individual letter from the DWP explaining what was happening - you know like you do for every change in laws/policy (not!). Of course every news paper at the time carried the story on the front page after the budget, but apparently that doesn't count.

There were further changes in 2011 (when the age for all was increased from 65 to 66/67/68) which most will agree were handled badly, but the govt did then make some concessions for affected women, slowing the rate of increase.
http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov. ... etable.pdf

Basically, the WASPI women only support equality when it suits them.

[Malcolm]

Hi,

Also this talk about a flat pension is not totally true. It is dependant on how many years contributions and how much from year 2016. Most will end up with less than the quoted state pension. Reading the NI contribution site on pensions was a nightmare.

It's not a flat pension - never was. It is a flat RATE pension. The rate is currently around £4.50 per week per full year of NI contributions, up to a maximum of 35 years. There are transitional arrangements in effect so it's a bit messy for anyone reaching SP age in the next 8 or so years, but anyone who is still working and reaches SP age after about 2024 and has 35 years NI will get the full amount - about £159 per week. By contrast, the old basic state pension was £119 per week, although you could build up enough SERPS/S2P to almost double that.

[zero_gravity]

)

I was expecting that sort of comment Malcolm.

However bear in mind that women in the 60-65 group were contracted to receive their pension age 60 when they started workand have paid into "their" portion of the State Pension for 40 years , so whichever way you look at it , they have/will be deprived of a considerable amount. Not only that but those already receiving their SP were funded by those who worked and paid their taxes during their working life.
I do agree though that women only want equality if it suits them and is beneficial to them.

[Sussex to Devon]

Hi,

It's not a flat pension - never was. It is a flat RATE pension. The rate is currently around £4.50 per week per full year of NI contributions, up to a maximum of 35 years. There are transitional arrangements in effect so it's a bit messy for anyone reaching SP age in the next 8 or so years, but anyone who is still working and reaches SP age after about 2024 and has 35 years NI will get the full amount - about £159 per week. By contrast, the old basic state pension was £119 per week, although you could build up enough SERPS/S2P to almost double that.

This a much better explanation than my post from Malcolm. I reach SP in next 7 years so me it was a bit of working out.

[Malcolm]

)

I was expecting that sort of comment Malcolm.

However bear in mind that women in the 60-65 group were contracted to receive their pension age 60 when they started workand have paid into "their" portion of the State Pension for 40 years , so whichever way you look at it , they have/will be deprived of a considerable amount. Not only that but those already receiving their SP were funded by those who worked and paid their taxes during their working life.

And I disagree. There is/was no contract. These women paid NI to build up an entitlement to whatever the SP would be when they get to SP qualifying age. No-one promised them what the SP amount would be, and no-one promised them that the qualifying age wouldn't change. They had 20+ years to plan for the major change that was introduced in 1995 - over half their working life.

In the mean time their contributions were pi55ed up the wall by various governments which (on average) they voted for. They also (on average) voted for governments that removed student grants and replaced them with interest paying student loans, and removed free student tuition and replaced that with £9K p/a fees. These students now typically have £50K+ debt on leaving university, yet they expect these same students to now pay taxes and NI so that they can collect their SP at 60 whereas the young will have to work till 68.

[zero_gravity]

I think I hit a nerve ! )

Heading for the bunker!

[reheat module]

It does go to show that the effect of the SP provision and personal Pensions can be a real minefield.
I have been through the process to establish my Wife's NI contributions, to ensure she is covered to statutory levels in readiness for the set date. Not an overly easy process - I just wish these agencies would talk with one-another!
If I could emphasise anything, it would be for the youth to ensure, wherever possible, to have something in place for when they retire.
It's no enjoyment paying into the pot, but when the time comes (hopefully for all) and that the successive Govts haven't mismanaged it, that you can enjoy it.

[Malcolm]

This a much better explanation than my post from Malcolm. I reach SP in next 7 years so me it was a bit of working out.

It's quite simple. Contact DWP either online or by snail mail, and you'll get your starting amount under the new rules as of April 2016. This is virtually impossible to manually calculate yourself; its the higher of your entitlement under the old (pre 2016) rules or the new (post 2016) rules. The starting value is cast in stone as of April 2016. If you have lots of SERPS/S2P then the starting value could be up to about £250 per week. If you have virtually no SERPS/S2P then it could be as low as £119.

You then take the starting amount, and add on an additional £4.50 per year of NI contributions after 2016 - up to a limit of £159. If you've already got more than £159, then your pension won't increase.

So worst case, no SERPS/S2P would entitle you to £119 p/w as of 2016. Then add on 7 more years at £4.50 and you'll get to £150 ish. We're actually in tax year 2017-18, and the new rules came in for 2016-17 so you may actually have 8 years under the new rules and get to the limit of £159.

[Malcolm]

It does go to show that the effect of the SP provision and personal Pensions can be a real minefield.
I have been through the process to establish my Wife's NI contributions, to ensure she is covered to statutory levels in readiness for the set date. Not an overly easy process - I just wish these agencies would talk with one-another!
If I could emphasise anything, it would be for the youth to ensure, wherever possible, to have something in place for when they retire.
It's no enjoyment paying into the pot, but when the time comes (hopefully for all) and that the successive Govts haven't mismanaged it, that you can enjoy it.

Where's the 'I agree' smiley. Particularly the last two lines.

Far too many people don't even think about retirement income until they're in their late 40's or early 50's - and by then it's (almost) too late. The Workplace pension is a step in the right direction, but currently contribution levels are set far too low, and people should not be allowed to opt out. Relying on the state pension alone is planning to live in poverty during retirement.

[Sussex to Devon]

Hi,

My wife was born in 1961 and has never once had a letter telling her of any changes. We dreamed of retiring at the same year as we have a five year age gap. When I was at work, workplace pension didn't exist with my employers due to the company size and even if it did the amount I could contribute wouldn't be worth having. (Also private and work pensions only came about late in my employment) I have since been made redundant and have downsized our property to fund early retirement, we have enough to fund us until my pension age, then we will survive on a single pension as that is what we are basically living on now. We are not going to let them ruin our dream. Due to the changes I will be 72 before wife gets her state pension, and that won't be a full amount, as my contributions are pre 2016, chances are I won't see a full amount either.

[Pen Pusher]

My State Pension age is now 66.

The State Pension age is regularly reviewed to make sure that the State Pension is affordable and fair. People are living longer, and spending a larger proportion of their adult life in retirement than in the past.

When the State Pension was introduced in 1948, a 65-year-old could expect to spend 13.5 years in receipt of it – around 23% of their adult life. This has been increasing ever since. In 2017, a 65-year-old can now expect to live for another 22.8 years, or 33.6% of their adult life.

Latest projections from the Office for National Statistics show that the number of people over State Pension age in the UK is expected to grow by a third between 2017 and 2042, from 12.4 million in 2017 to 16.9 million in 2042.
The proposals

Under the current law, the State Pension age is due to increase to 68 between 2044 and 2046.

Following a recent review, the government has announced plans to bring this timetable forward. The State Pension age would therefore increase to 68 between 2037 and 2039.
Your date of birth How the proposals affect you
On or before 5 April 1970 No change
Between 6 April 1970 and 5 April 1978 Your State Pension age is currently 67. It would increase to between 67 years and 1 month, and 68 years, depending on your date of birth
After 6 April 1978 No change. Your State Pension age remains 68

These proposed changes would have to be approved by Parliament before they are agreed.

Those affected by this proposed timetable will on average continue to spend longer in receipt of the State Pension than anyone reaching State Pension age in the last 25 years.

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/prop ... -increases

Brian

[Proteus]

I am sure I have probably misread something but life expectancy figures for 1948 were.
"When the NHS was founded in 1948, the life expectancy for men was 66, and for women, 71. Today those figures are 77.2 and 81.5."
So where they found pensioners that lived for 13.5 years beyond 65 is beyond me.

[Malcolm]

My wife was born in 1961 and has never once had a letter telling her of any changes.

No-one ever gets notice of changes to laws. I don't remember getting a personal letter saying NSL speed limit signs don't mean de-restricted anymore.

We dreamed of retiring at the same year as we have a five year age gap.

But that dream was popped in 1993-95, so you both (should) have known for 22 years now that it wasn't going to happen?

Due to the changes I will be 72 before wife gets her state pension, and that won't be a full amount, as my contributions are pre 2016, chances are I won't see a full amount either.

Huh? Your wife will get her SP based on HER NI record, not yours. She must have at least 10 years NI or she will get nothing at all. If she has 35 or more years, she'll get the full SP.

Your contributions being pre 2016 make no difference to what happens now (assuming you weren't already above SP age in April2016). If you're still working then you can still build up to the full amount. If you're not then you can 'buy' the extra NI years to get to the full SP. This is usually good value but obviously depends on having the spare cash available.

[Malcolm]

My State Pension age is now 66.

..and has been for 22 years now. The changes that affect you (and me) were introduced in 1995.

[Sussex to Devon]

Hi,

No-one ever gets notice of changes to laws.

But the government implied that they would let all women affected by changes know by letter, I was only making the point it didn't happen for everyone. As for the 90's we busy raising our family and to be honest do not remember pension age being such a big subject of discussion. It must be more in the press now then it was then, as it such a hot topic now.