Civil service pensions- what a fucking farce!

[MissCooCooMcgoo]

My mum died in March. They were notified literally on the day by her manager. We are now in July and they have been the most unhelpful, frustrating people I have ever had the misfortune to deal with!

I called 4 weeks ago and they assured me they had everything from me they needed only to chase today to be told they want more information including my decree absolute from my first marriage? WHY do they need this information from 14 years ago?

My mum kept her information updated and they have me down as the beneficiary with my married name of the last 12 years.

Anyone else had to deal with this shitshow? They should be ashamed. All of this is hard enough as it is.

No, I havent. I will attempt this tomorrow.

Capita (private co) administer the public service pensions so you shall we agree that inefficiencies apply to the private sector too?

The broadsheets anonymise everything before they publish it and there's no "sad face" type affairs but definitely think HR are the best first place to try.

Example of the guardian's consumer champions article:

https://www.theguardian.com/money/2026/jun/08/scottishpower-cheques-late-brother-relatives?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Other

Interestingly, when the inefficient, overpaid, underworked, tea drinking, newspaper reading, working from home, always on holiday, (have I missed anything ?) civil servants were running CS Pensions they were efficient.

Now, the outsourced, ‘value for money’, private company Capita have the contract very few recently retiring Civil Servants have had their lump sums or monthly pensions paid.

Whether you agree with the level of CS Pensions, and nowadays very few are as lucrative as the general public think, or not, to deny retirees their legitimate income is disgusting. Many won’t be able to claim their State Pensions yet and even if they did those SPs will be calculated based on their expected CS Pensions. My SP was reduced by 40% due to my opting out for CS Pension.

Oh, and CS internal job preservation is, in my view, an outdated concept.

I thought all pensions were to named beneficiaries. (Defined contribution at least.)

Codswallop

Yeah, I really enjoyed having shitty nappies plastered against the screen, people punching staff, being threatened and sworn at. It was great.

I fucked off out of it ASAP as did anyone else who was able to.

Btw if you cut back office it makes life much more difficult for frontline staff.

I’m not sure what inside out you know but it isn’t true.

Deleted

I don’t know one CS front line worker who does it for the excitement.

They were equally shit 20 years ago when my dad died.

Seriously, are you with the rest of us in this century ? Your views of Civil Servants are at least 30 or more years out of date.

FFS. Capita is also responsible for teachers pensions, and it's the same shit show for them. And no teacher or HT is responsible for that shit show, just as no civil servant is. How many times does it need saying that Capita is a private company?

Apologies if already written, not seen the whole thread. Can apply for Class F exemption for the council tax, means no council tax until you have probate, then have 6 months to go before payment, as long as nobody is living in the house.

Bbbbbut, it doesn’t matter because all Civil Servants and Teachers are overpaid, underworked, protected scroungers, so it doesn’t matter if a bloated private company screws them around and out of their dues for months/years.

Makes sense. I work in the private sector so hadn’t really thought about civil service pensions, but good to know more.

Look I have apologised for being responsible for thread drift from the OP's original post. The adequacy or otherwise of the CS should be a separate thread.

I fully understand that Capita are private. But they work to a contract agreed with the CS. How demanding or well policed do you imagine that is?!

Inefficiency irritates me whereever it is!

I do think productivity in the CS is low. Everyone I know in a SCS role shared this view. I think many in lower grades recognize it too.

But apologies for what was not intended as a hijack but seems to have become one.

This is helpful, thank-you

I’m retiring in 7 years’ time - so I hope they’ve sorted it out by then!

They are not known as 'Crapita' for nothing!!

@KateSixer

“I know the CS inside out.

Office workers doing not so much slowly, counting the hours to home time. Actually not home time as they all WFH.”

The civil service employs over half a million people working in thousands of locations in a huge variety of roles. How could little you possibly know the WHOLE thing inside out? What ignorance and arrogance.

I’m a CS ‘office worker’ and I’ve never met a bunch or harder working, intelligent and highly competent people. There’s no option to ‘do not so much slowly’: we have high targets to meet in a very niche and very highly-skilled role. Everyone works VERY hard. Oh, and the pay is shite too.

I don’t know who you’re referring to but it’s not me nor my colleagues. (So go * yourself.)

My husband died last September and I only just heard from them regarding death in service payment and possible death benefit for our son last Saturday.
They had all the forms and documents by November. Said they had all they needed
Now in July they say they need something else...it's unbelievable.

I have had to fill in a financial hardship form with them as I can't work due to a long standing health problem .
The stress from chasing it up is terrible.

Sent too soon..
Sorry you are going through all this too OP

Look I am not going to report your abuse although I'd be justified in so doing (I see you have now deleted the word fuck and replaced it with an *!)

Also this is the OP's thread and I accept that shortcomings in the CS are not the subject matter here.

But your statement that "I’m a CS ‘office worker’ and I’ve never met a bunch or harder working, intelligent and highly competent people" is risible.

Yes that applies to some very dedicated CSs but anyone working in the service (especially those with private sector experience) would have to be blind not to recognise that across the whole CS there are very significant levels of unproductive workers, inefficiencies and pointless projects.

Unless you know me, my office, my job and co-workers, you’re not actually qualified to comment on it, are you!