Cope pension

[boredsolicitor]

I just did a state pension forecast and it referred to a cope estimate amount . I have tried to work out what this is but I confess I'm finding it v confusing . Is this part of the state pension or on top? I've tried the gov pension tracing but none of my previous employers are registered so I'm at a loss where to start looking if I need to do that - any advice gratefully received.

The State Pension changed on 1 April 2016 and the option to pay contracted out NI contributions ceased. For those due to retire after this date they worked out your state pension entitlement as at 31 March 2016 and this became your starting point for the new state pension. The figure calculated is known as COPE. Each year after 1 April 2016 where you paid sufficient NI adds a cash figure to your state pension up to the maximum.
HTH

Well that's not quite right.
COPE stands for Contracted Out Pension Equivalent, if you have a COPE estimate then you have either been in a company pension which was opted out of SERPS/SSP automatically, public sector or larger employer for example, and paid a reduce NI as a result.
Or you yourself opted out of SERPS/SSP, as a result a portion of your NI payments were redirected to a private pension pot with a Government rebate on top (at least you did until Gordon Brown decided to raid private pensions for a few billion but that's another story)

If it's the latter you will have a private pension pot with someone, you will have chosen the provider although this may have since changed hands.
If it was the former you will not have a separate pension pot as you paid a reduced NI contribution along with a decent company pension that would more than make up for it.

Neither scenario makes any difference to a state pension any more as it's flat rate based upon years of NI contributions. The calculations are complicated if you have worked both prior and after 2016 with your entitlement worked out under old and new system in April 2016. Whichever entitlement gave you the best outcome was your starting point from that date going forward.

Ignore the number of years contributions you have and COPE figure they give. Look at the number of years required for you to reach a full state pension.

If you have enough working years left to reach full state pension entitlement then you will be better off having been opted out of SERPS/SSP. Those who never opted out will only get a full state pension whereas you will not only get the same state pension you will also have a private/company pension on top.

Thanks both . I did opt out of SERPS for a period of about 4 years in the 1980s but I doubt it's this as it says cope is £70/week which seems a lot for such a short period . Since then I've been in Lgps so perhaps it's that . I will keep digging

The LGPS was also a contacted out scheme as well. That will be the source of the cope.

Thanks so much - makes sense now