Widows Pension

very_anxious

My friend is receiving a widows pension from company pension scheme following the death of her husband a couple of years after he retired. She is wondering whether she would lose this pension if she remarried or cohabited? The simple answer of course would be to contact the company but she prefers not to. Can anyone help?

molerat

The only way to find out is to contact the pension trustees as there may be different versions of the pension with different rules.

xylophone

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/9506266/Navy-widow-jailed-for-pension-fraud-after-failing-to-reveal-new-boyfriend.html

Be afraid, be very afraid...?
She has no option but to look at the scheme rules.

xylophone

It has just occurred to me that if she types the name of the scheme into Google she might come up with the scheme rules.

margaretclare

very_anxious wrote: »

My friend is receiving a widows pension from company pension scheme following the death of her husband a couple of years after he retired. She is wondering whether she would lose this pension if she remarried or cohabited? The simple answer of course would be to contact the company but she prefers not to. Can anyone help?

Has she got some paperwork from the company from the time that she started to receive this pension? There should be something. Otherwise, there is no option but to ask. Why does she prefer not to?

dzug1

Put it this way - if the scheme rules provide for cessation of pension in the event of remarriage, etc, then she is committing fraud if she fails to notify the company. It will in the end come out (even if only after her own death) and cause massive trouble.

As to whether it's likely that the scheme rules are framed this way - older pension schemes will be, invariably. Newer ones can be more generous, but not invariably so.

There really is no alternative but to ask if she is contemplating this

Faith177

I know my mum's policy widow pension is effected even if she was to just have a boyfriend.

It is probably best as others have said for her to check with the scheme

margaretclare

xylophone wrote: »

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/9506266/Navy-widow-jailed-for-pension-fraud-after-failing-to-reveal-new-boyfriend.html

Be afraid, be very afraid...?
She has no option but to look at the scheme rules.

The woman in this report was sent papers which she didn't read. I feel sure that the OP's friend must have had some paperwork from her late husband's scheme, unless she destroys everything without reading it?

iris

I have a friend who receives a widow's pension (her husband was in the police force) and has had a 'boyfriend' for many years. I asked her once why they didn't get married and she openly replied that she would totally lose her very generous widow's pension!