In our weekly series, readers can email in with any questions about retirement and pension savings to be answered by our expert, Tom Selby, director of public policy at investment platform AJ Bell. There is nothing he does not know about pensions. If you have a question for him, email us at money@theipaper.com.
Question: I attempted to claim my teaching pension at 60, this was in July 2024, but still haven’t started receiving it. I am currently waiting on their in-house complaints team to find out what has happened. Their website and phone calls give absolutely no information, only that the claim is in process with no timescale. As a private renter now working part time, I am in a precarious situation and may have to rely on savings. Please can you suggest any possible lines of enquiry, it’s a long time till I can claim my state pension.
Answer: As you’re in the Teachers’ Pension Scheme, you should be entitled to a defined benefit (DB) pension when you reach your scheme’s “normal pension age”. Both the way public sector workers, including members of the Teachers’ Pension Scheme, build up benefits and the age at which they can access them was changed in 2015, with benefit accruals shifting from a “final salary” to a “career average” basis and the normal pension age brought into line with the state pension age (currently rising from age 66 to age 67, with the transition due to complete in 2028).
Anyone who built up pension entitlement under the pre-2015 rules can still receive that portion of their entitlement based on the pre-2015 terms, which is probably why you are able to claim your pension from age 60 (this was the normal pension age for members who joined the Teachers’ Pension Scheme before 1 January, 2007).
There have been widely reported administrative issues which have affected the scheme recently. The background to why this is happening is complex, but essentially it goes back to an announcement from the government as part of the 2015 reforms that those within 10 years of retirement would be able to continue to stay in the scheme on the pre-2015 terms.
That decision was successfully challenged by younger workers, resulting in the government moving all public sector workers on to career average terms from 2022.
However, between 2015 and 2022 different workers, including teachers, were put into different schemes based on their age – something that had to be reversed after the legal ruling. As a result, members of the scheme during that period had to be given a formal choice of how their benefits are calculated – either on the old final salary basis or the new career average basis.
The backlog of cases is reportedly tens of thousands of members and until the member has had the opportunity to choose how their 2015-22 pension entitlement is calculated, the pension cannot legally be paid. This, in a nutshell, is likely why you are struggling to get your hands on your pension.
There are a number of avenues of complaint you can pursue if you are unhappy with the administration of your pension. Firstly, you can complain to your scheme via this contact form in its members portal or in writing.
If your complaint isn’t resolved, you can escalate it via Internal Dispute Resolution. Details of how this can be done should be included in your initial response from the scheme.
If that doesn’t work, you can take a complaint to the Pensions Ombudsman, which will investigate your complaint and has the legal power to enforce a decision and, if appropriate, instruct for compensation to be paid.
Unfortunately, all of these avenues will take time and effort, and there is every chance that the administrative issues will have been resolved by the time any complaint is formally processed (although you may receive compensation which could make it worthwhile).
Hence then, the article about i attempted to claim my teacher pension two years ago why am i still waiting was published today ( ) and is available on inews ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( I attempted to claim my teacher pension two years ago – why am I still waiting? )
Also on site :