No pensions and retirement not-planning

margaretclare

I've edited out most of this. sorry!

Margaret

Pobby

Hi Margaret----do they get a basic state pension?

A_Nice_Englishman

Get them to have a look at https://www.entitledto.co.uk

Pobby

Hi again.I am self employed and my N.I contributions are split into 2.Monthly I pay just under £9 per month.Then I pay twice yearly an amount which is related to the profit I made the year earlier.I rang the pension folks up and the payment which relates to the state pension payment is the monthly contribution.

Unless he has ben a tax ghost,he should ,at least, get the basic state pension.

djohn2002uk

margaretclare wrote:

This is what I can't understand. He seemed to be saying they don't get ANYTHING.

Working as a cab-driver for the last 44 years, he'll have been self-employed. Do self-employed people qualify for basic state pension....or not? Do they pay full NI contributions...or not?

We couldn't really go into a great amount of detail. We were just getting ready to go to church. Being of a different religion, they probably forgot all about the fact that we go to church, and just wanted to ask about DH and his knee surgery (which didn't happen). I'd like to ask 'Did you pay into the national pension scheme, or did you pay some kind of reduced contribution for the self-employed?'

Margaret

Margaret, this is as much as I know about self-employed, there are more than one option to pay NI contributions but I don't remember the details. But they still need to pay to get entitlement to doctor and hospital services and ultimately their OAP. I know this from going self-employed in my late fifties/ early sixties. Unfortunately for me I paid about 3yrs more than I needed to because they don't automatically tell you when you have 44yrs in and don't give refunds.

Too late...lol

Pobby

Would schmuck be one?

EdInvestor

I looked up the CAB site and it says that Class 2 (which the self-employed must pay) entitles you to SRP.

IIRC Class 2 conts are voluntary.So if he didn't pay he may not be entitled to the state pension ( if he's 70, he should have heard about that by now).

Self employed people are not entitled to S2P/Serps.

Presumably pension credit would be in order - and free council tax? (BTW is pension credit 114 quid a week per person?)

They wouldn't need housing benefit if they have their own home.If they have a spare room,a lodger might be useful - you can get around 4.5k a years IIRC tax free.

margaretclare

EdInvestor wrote:

IIRC Class 2 conts are voluntary.So if he didn't pay he may not be entitled to the state pension ( if he's 70, he should have heard about that by now).

This may well be the case, according to what we've been hearing. Even if people complain about 'I've only got the state pension and it isn't enough' they don't usually say they have NO money at all.

Self employed people are not entitled to S2P/Serps.

I did know that, and it's sad - DH and I know from experience how valuable this is. DH gets as much again in SERPS as he does in SRP, and I can inherit it if he dies first.

Presumably pension credit would be in order - and free council tax? (BTW is pension credit 114 quid a week per person?)

As he's seeing a benefits adviser within the next few days presumably he'll be told all that.

They wouldn't need housing benefit if they have their own home.If they have a spare room,a lodger might be useful - you can get around 4.5k a years IIRC tax free.

I don't think that would work very well knowing them. What would make a lot of sense would be for them to 'downsize' and move. Their biggest asset is undoubtedly the house - worth maybe £400K?

Margaret

Pobby

Never quite worked out why the self employed are not allowed serps or sp2.I have been self employed for years and dear oh dear I have paid some savage tax and N.I.When trying to build up my business I have taken little out to feed back profits to buy stock with.However I have been taxed on the whole amount.Example,profits £50k,drawings £13k,the rest reinvested,taxed on the whole amount of £50k.Don`t give ya a lot of insentive really!

seven-day-weekend

I thought every person of State Pension age got at least £110 per week? Whether it's SRP, or IS, or tax credits, or whatever it is??

Having read what I've just written, I'm even more confused; if what I've writen is true, then it doesn't seem to matter whether you pay in or not? Can't be right, surely??

nrsql

>> Can't be right, surely
Why not?
How else would they survive?

http://www.fsa.gov.uk/CONSUMER/06_PENSIONS/review/state_pension.html
The government has introduced Pension Credit to help pensioners with little or no savings at retirement. In 2005, if a person or their partner is aged 60 or over, Pension Credit guarantees an income of at least:

£114.05 a week (single); or
£174.05 a week (couple).