Opted out of SERPS but no private pension for last 18 years

Idlewood

Hi all,

I opted out of SERPS waaaaaay back in 1990 and into a private pension, but had to halt that come 1992/93 with the arrival of children etc. I never resumed the pension plan (assets are locked in but don't amount to much), so what happens to the remaining amount that the government would have been contributing to my pension? Is that essentially dead money and gone, or am I entitled to it as back pay?

Asking as I'm off to Australia at the end of this year and tying up all this loose ends (yes I know that involves things that should never have become loose ends like this!!!).

Many thanks in advance for any help gicen,

Idlewood

EdInvestor

Idlewood wrote: »

I opted out of SERPS waaaaaay back in 1990 and into a private pension, but had to halt that come 1992/93 with the arrival of children etc. I never resumed the pension plan.

If you did not formally opt back in, or join a company pension scheme, then the Govt will still be paying your NI Serps/S2P rebates into that old pension. If you did formally opt back in, then the money will be buying you additional state pension(S2P). If you have not been working since you stopped contributing to the pension, then you won't be accruing any additional rebates..

Get a forecast of your state pension here, and you can confirm with them if you are opted in or out - and if out, where they are sending the rebates.

https://www.thepensionservice.gov.uk

I'm off to Australia at the end of this year

Note that these days you only need 30 years NI contributions to get the basic state pension.If you already have quite a few years clocked up (you get them also if you stay at home looking after children) then you may want to make voluntary contributions when overseas to reach the total.

Three things to bear in mind:

#The UK state pension isn't uprated for inflation in Australia
BUT

#The Australian state pension is means-tested and thus only very poorly off people get it.

#You need to keep an eye on your old private pension (it may be best to move it) to make sure it's performing, even if it doesn't amount to much at present.

Idlewood

Many thanks for that, I'll chase the pension company and see where things stand in that regard.

Just one more query if you don't mind: the pension was left as a unit trust (is worth a few hundred pound as I recall, sorry I don't have the paperwork in fromt of me at the moment); how do I know if this is underperforming and how do I go about moving it if so and who to?

Many thanks again for the advice, I'm hoping I can find a similar excellent web site in Australia for this kind of financial advice.

Regards,

Terry

EdInvestor

Suggest you get the pension info first: there is a possibility that it has become worthless, especially if you have not been working at all over the period and it was only worth a few hundred pounds when you stopped.