Anyone out there opted out of their company pension?

[Millie3030]

Hi,

I I'm a teacher and have been paying into my pension for 7 years. It costs over £200 a month for the pension and I have to work until I'm 68 to see any of my pension money.

Sounds morbid but my nan died at 65, my mum at 59, I really don't think I'm going to live to see that pension money. Has anyone opted out of he pension and just enjoyed the money now, whilst they are young and have a family and can benefit now??

I feel like I'm saving for a rainy day that I may never see, £2400 a year is a holiday my family could go on every year! I know there are tax deductions so it won't be as much as that, but it's still more every month whilst I'm young ish (30) that could make a difference.

I'm glad I'm not the only one thinking it does just seem so much to pay in, to not even have a guarantee you will ever see it again.

Not sure if my pension is final salary, a lot of teachers go part time by the time they are 55 etc so their final salary would be very low anyway.

I'm sure it will be a retirement age of 72 soon! Erghh I will never live long enough to enjoy retirement.

Millie
You REALLY, REALLY, REALLY need to speak to your pensions team.
You are in a "defined benefit" pension scheme : your income will be related to your average salary across your whole career - a fixed fraction of it for the number of years service

it is THE BEST deal still available : NO private pension even comes close.
And you WILL see that money - either as a pension, or as a lump sum on retirement, or your DH will get it
but PLEASE do not walk away from one of the last "Gold-plated" pension schemes without understanding what it is - and you clearly do not.

I am an LGPS employer : my scheme closed before I joined the company so I see others getting benefits I ca only dream of.

Tell you what, I'll pay your measly £200 a month to you in return for your pension benefits. You can get your ISA or whatever crappy thing you want to do with your money and I'll laugh all the way into retirement.

Seriously, wise up, you obviously are utterly clueless to how amazing your pension scheme is. You really don't deserve it, please give it to me.

Chunderella
If you do not have access to any sort of DB scheme - neither do I - max out your tax free savings first then pay down all mortgage debt so that you have tax free gain on your house then look at other more interesting investments like land and property
and frankly
in my case, do not retire.
I plan to work less months but nevr stop working if possible.

I don't know the ins and outs of my pension and my pension statement is quite confusing, and isn't as clear as my husbands which outlines all the estimates should he retire at age X/Y etc. Mystatement is just a bunch of numbers without projections. All I know is that when I started teaching 7 years ago, everyone said "it's one of the best ones out there, definitely sign up for it" so I did.

I am not saying I think my pension is bad, I'm not not denying it is a good one, but it is only a good thing IF you live a long time. My nan paid into a pension and died at 65, so did my mum and died at 59, so even if they had the most 'super duper amazing gold plated' blooming pension what good did it do them? Ok my grandad got a lump sum, which he has since spent on moving to Spain with his girlfriend, and my dad has paid off the rest of his mortgage. I'm sure my nan and mum would not be pleased they paid every month for that, when they could have gone on a family or couples holiday every year for their entire adult life, and enjoyed the money while they were young and fit.

Does anyone feel there is a better way to prepare for the future or way to invest that doesn't include a pension?

Absolutely no better way than a final salary pension. Have you not taken in anything anyone has said?

Why are you ignoring what people have said about spouse's pensions, death in service benefits, possibility of early retirement through ill health etc?

Ther are some extremely highly qualified financial services professionals on this thread trying to stop you making a really really stupid mistake. Please take heed.

You don't pay income tax on pension savings. So if you pay into a pension after tax, you can claim it back. That's 20% or so. If you pay before tax, if it comes out of your salary, then don't forget that you need to pay the tax if you stop paying your pension. So it might not be £200 a month anyway. Right?

Hello TalkinPeace,
I don't know if you are still on this website, but if by chance you are, could I possibly ask your advice ?
I know this thread is very old, but I have only just seen it.!I really just don't know what to do. I was six years into my teaching career when I was struck down with a serious progressive illness. I contacted the teachers pension and told them I could not carrying on teaching, or work in any capacity ever again.Their responses was swift. This was in 1995. I was asked for no information about my illness, or the devasting effect a life without a pension would be. They received a letter from my temporary doctor, who knew nothing about me. They gave me immediately my pension , without any advice , guidance or help. I was too ill at the time and still am, to find out about the repercussions of this monumental decision, and how it has impacted so negatively on my life.n As the years have gone on and my life has been more and more awful, I have no money to live on, and only a pension of around £2,000 a year. Yes, I have benefits, but my illness has taken every penny I have just to survive. Can I contact the teachers pension and ask them to reconsider my case ? and also tell them that they did not once try to discuss with me any options that may have been helpful to some-one in my position? it is not that I went off for another career. I have been wheelchairbound and severely disabled ever since.Thank-you so very much. I am really in the depths of desapir and hope my letter is of warning to those of you who don't want to keep a teaching pension

Fluff I'm sorry you are in such a state but I don't really understand what you expect the teachers' pension scheme to do? As far as I can gather you have been receiving an ill - health pension for the last 20 years? So I don't see that there is anything for them to reconsider as they are already paying you a pension?

It may be that your scheme provided two levels of ill-health pension, depending on how disabling your condition was, and you were paid the lower rate but feel it should have been the higher? In that case you could complain and ask them to reconsider but to succeed you would need to show that you satisfied the more serious ill-health test back in 1995.

Hi Mrs Reynolds,,
Thank-you for taking the time to reply to me. Yes, you are right, I don't expect them to do anything for me-I suppose I just want to be sure that there is nothing I should be claiming that I have missed. I think the only thing I am really questioning is something a friend told me , that is if you are still under pensionable age you should be receiving a proportion of what you could you have earned up until retirement age.I don't think this makes sense, as if you havent paid in, you can't take it out.!I have checked my pension details and I was teaching for twelve years . I am not sure how one is meant to live on such a small amount of money-thats all. Anyway -thank-you for taking the time to write. I am very grateful.

fluffy

You need to contact the citizens advice. They have trained IFA's that can help you. They can investigate the pension and also any benefits you are entitled to. The money wise initiative is excellent and can really help you.

If you will retire in UK in the future with qualifying years

The current max is
"The full new State Pension will be £155.65 per week"

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I believe if you pay into a company pension your company also adds "free" money into your pension pot ( I think via tax rebate)

Your company pension may also pay out some money if you die before retirement age to your nominated family eg husband, children, other nominated people

Your company pension probably pays more than the equivalent of 3% profit

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ISAs in the UK are tax free, but do not pay very much interest, under 3%
www.moneysavingexpert.com/

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Therefore you benefit more if you stay with your company pension

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If you were good at saving you could pay into your company pension, save into an ISA and save for a holiday

dear don't call me that you cunt!
Thank-you very much. I shall contact them today. Sorry to be thick-what is a money wise initiative? is it something I ask the citizens advice about?
Many thanks, I am grateful you bothered to reply-thank-you !
fluffy

I'm like Fluff in that I had to retire early through ill health though I was not really young like Fluff.

Fluff I'm really sorry you have been so unwell, it's so crappy when life chucks chronic ill health forever at you isn't it.

My pension is not huge as it is the pension from my last post so only 15 years of my career but it makes a big difference to my life. When I took it out I had no idea I would become unwell and it wasn't something I considered at all. There is also the consideration of lump sum paid out and pension to any dependants to consider. I was in a defined benefits scheme.

Dear Preciousxbane,
Thank-you for your sweet words. how kind you are. I appreciated it a lot. You obviously are in the same boat and know what's it like. it is pretty shit isn't it?
Please may I ask you something Preciousxbane? were you a teacher? or in the public sector? How did you manage to get your ill health pension? When they paid you , were you given a lump sum plus enhancement? I am finding it so hard as I can't concentrate well now, so when I read information I need to reread it and say it aloud like a child to try and understand it and retain it. The to use it and write a letter of appeal really is tough going. They knew I had progressive M.S and yet it continues to be a struggle. I have files full of medical reports. Another problem is I have no good support networks to help me. When you are ill and out of the work-force you seem to slip off the radar-even friends give up in the end-but I can understand that. No-one wants to be with a person who is nothing more then a shell of what they were-although I am still chipper inside.! it's just my body and the neurological side of things that have let me down big time.!
I send you my love and support for what ever horror of ill health you are battling with, preciousxbane. I am thinking of you and wishing you positive feelings. I am always here if you get fed up.

Hi Fluffy,
Yup I'm still here, just with a minor spelling change.

I very much doubt that the TPS could or would do anything.
But the CAB should be able to put you in touch with people who can help you get a PIP sorted out which will make the best of your bad lot.

If needs be, start your own thread called "stuff all pension because had to take early disability retirement" and some of the other clever bods will pop up and help out.

Hi talkinnpeace
Thank-you so much!. I am glad you are still there.When you see someone nd they havent written for a while ,I always worry that something awful has happened to them in the meantime- I am such a positive person!. To be honest talkinnpeace, I have held off benefits-I know they are there-but I have not been btrought up to be a scrounger. I hate benefits and all they stand for. I would rather be in complete povery then use them. I jst don't want to be a burden to the taxpayer. I knew about pip-but I don't know. It's just so awful to be in that position.I do have a house -so not all is completely awful. Would it be worth me selling it and inversting most of the money to try and get some sort of money to live on? problem is , there ae not many high interest accounts any more. It's all I have -and I am frightened to lose the only security I have left. Thanks for the info about the CAB. I will sort something out. I won't be beaten. Thank-you for your input.

fluff
Folks like me who pay a wodge of tax would much rather it went to people who need a PIP than on Nuclear Submarines.
Claim what you are entitled to to make your life comfortable.
You may even find ways to "give back" by volunteering once you are properly sorted out.
Keep your house.
TAlk to the CAB - they are cool.

Fluff,
As talkinpeace says. Nothing to do with pensions at all, just to say I have SPMS and at the moment I'm having horrendous time. Keep hold of your house and apply for PIP. I was sceptical but got the higher rate for both backdated to when I first put in the claim and as I get higher rate it's a good sum every4 weeks plus an initial lump sum as it took a while to assess. I was expecting the process to be awful but mine seemed relatively easy. What I will say is give examples of your worst days and don't play it down, with MS everything can change daily. The way I look at it is I've worked for 30+ years and still do so I'm getting some money back.

Thanks, talkinnpeacefor the words of wisdom-also about the house-that has solved one problem. I will contact the CAB

fluffy another place to ask pension questions is The Pensions Advisory Service. They can be very good.

The CAB though are brilliant, they have a 'Pension Wise' and a general money service, benefits, debt, everything. good luck.

I have sent you a pm Fluff but to add having looked at your further posts my lovely friend has MS and she does receive PIP. I agree with Talkin I have paid a ton of tax in my life as has DH and it is absolutely people like yourself that need some assistance.

Anyway to add to my PM I had that career for 25 years but my pensionable years are with two separate employers.

I need to also add I spoke to the Pensions Advosory service at the time of my early retirement and they were really helpful.

Thank-you so much. You are such a kind person to try and help-I am so grateful-really. it is so helpful Many thanks x