MSE News: Government outlines flat-rate state pension

posh*spice

So the boomers are going to get a significantly higher pension in 2017 - paid for by the rest of us....makes ya sick!

jobdone1

I have paid 20 full years NI contribution with only 10 years from the max 30 years to qualify for my full state pension, Not only are they going to increase my NI because i pay a private pension but they also expect me to pay a further 5 years NI to qualify for a full state pension o and not forgetting that i might not be able to claim untill i am 68 yrs of age.

scotsbob

Arthurian wrote: »

What about all those people who paid 'extra' contributions by cheque to make up for years when they didn't work enough hours to qualify for the full state pension? Turns out they didn't need to pay after all.

Too late now, though.

I can't help thinking if HMRC was a private company someone would now be chasing them for the return of those cheques.

Correct, I studied at university for 6 years and after I had worked for a couple of years and saved enough, I paid up the 6 years.

I could have saved or invested that money.

jobdone1

scotsbob wrote: »

Correct, I studied at university for 6 years and after I had worked for a couple of years and saved enough, I paid up the 6 years.

I could have saved or invested that money.

Proves doing the right thing does not pay:mad:

StevieJ

This is going to be an administrative nightmare for private sector final salary schemes.

Le73Uq86Uv

They soulld give you the option to transfer to the new scheme if it is better for you and assuming you have made the requirements including 35 years NI payments.

If you don't like what they do you have an option to say so in the next election.

Old_Slaphead

Le73Uq86Uv wrote: »

If you don't like what they do you have an option to say so in the next election.

Think Cameron has just disenfranchised most of his core vote ie 60+ year olds. Don't think he'll get too much support from women staying at home to look after kids either.

Absolutely no chance of Tories getting back in now.

Wonder what Milliband will say about new arrangement

Jaycee_Dove

It is also frustrating if you are a low paid self employed person. I have already paid stamps for 39 years but never earned enough or regularly enough to pay into a pension. But aware of self employed meaning no second state pension have saved when I could into an ISA. This has built a very small sum which has been all but demolished by low interest rates. As a pension it would barely add £20 per week onto what I get when I reach retirement age (before the new scheme arrives).

If I understand this new idea correctly self employed people will now get the same as everyone else - so someone qualifying just after me will get around £20 per week more than I will without having made any savings provisions at all. And £40 per week discounting my ISA savings.

I would have to defer my pension by several years to reach the £144 level AND be better off by squandering all the ISA money that I saved for my £20 per week top up. Because if I keep it I lose access to pension credit by having these savings. But if I do not have them then I will get the credit to make up my pension.

So unless I am missing something here this new pension system is surely going to basically tell anyone with only modest savings and/or self employed and set to retire in the next 3-4 years to dump all their savings as keeping them will only make them significantly worse off.

If I am not misreading things here that sounds absurd.

freeganneist

Every time I take advice on pension planning, the rules change. Based on previous advice from the pension service, I didn't need to purchase additional years of contributions. Now it looks as if I would have been better off doing it at the time, because now I'll need 35 years of contributions not 30. And my pension eligibility age keeps changing - first it was 60, then I was part of the phasing-in stage and due to be eligible at 62, then last year it changed to 66.

I contributed to company pension final salary schemes which were then wound up in the 2000's. The re-invested money has been hit by the financial crisis.

We're told to be responsible and to plan ahead, but no-one knows what's best because not only do the goalposts keep moving but the rules of the game keep changing too. It seems only those who can afford the fees for regular financial advice are able to keep up with the game, and it seems that no-one but the very rich can actually get ahead of the game.

How on earth do any of us plan for our old age?

Paul_Herring

Wywth wrote: »

What affect do these changes have on a private or employers pension? (which is paid on top of the state pension)

The removal of the ability to opt-out for starters. (Yes, I know that's being applied ahead of 'these changes' but it's still part of them.)

Froglet wrote: »

I do not see why they cannot just forget the pension credit and give everyone a fair amount,perhaps a bit less than £144 but give it to EVERYBODY.

Because some people are currently getting more than £144 state pension+S2P and it "wouldn't be faiiiiiiiiiiiir."

Whatever fair means these days.