Opted out of SERPS early 1990s

wildballoonlady

I have the vaguest of memories of opting out of SERPS back in the early 1990s. I have no recollection as to who persuaded me to do this and which company they were from. I have no paper work referring to this and at the time I was in no pension schemes.

Round about the same time, in 1992 I got a mortgage with Abbey National using a Friends Provident endowment policy (which was woefully mis-sold, but looks as if I haven't got a chance of claiming so late in the day).

There is no reference in the original endowment policy to my opting out of SERPS, so I have no idea if there is a connection with this.

Have I been conned? How can I find out what happened after my signing it off?

Why were we persuaded to opt out in the 90s?

wildballoonlady

Just to reiterate, I have no memory of which company persuaded me to opt out. Only that, at a possibly similar time I was buying my first home using Abbey National.

dunstonh

Have I been conned?

What makes you think that?

How can I find out what happened after my signing it off?

You would have been sent a policy document, cancellation rights and each year since then an annual statement.

You can ask for a search using: https://www.gov.uk/find-lost-pension

Why were we persuaded to opt out in the 90s?

Because if you were under the age of 45 at the time of contracting out it was almost certainly the right thing to do.

wildballoonlady

Thanks dunstonh. I thought perhaps, as I have no record of this, and certainly have not received statements, that it was being siphoned else where.

I will certainly check you link. If the Abbey National were involved would I not have received paper work over the years?

wildballoonlady

I have just filled in the form but it was asking for information I found very hard to provide. I was hoping they would just need my National Insurance number and address I was living at at the time of opting out. Instead I've had to dredge up details of a long lost employer who certainly wasn't offering a pension scheme - she ran a chain of barber shops in London. I also had to write in 'Abbey National' as the pension company, even though I have no idea if it was them. The form would not proceed without these details though.

dunstonh

. I thought perhaps, as I have no record of this, and certainly have not received statements, that it was being siphoned else where.

NI rebates were paid to the pension annually direct from HMRC to the provider.

Perhaps there were never any rebates? e.g. did you go self employed or a member of an occupational pension or did you stop working?

I have just filled in the form but it was asking for information I found very hard to provide. I was hoping they would just need my National Insurance number and address I was living at at the time of opting out. Instead I've had to dredge up details of a long lost employer who certainly wasn't offering a pension scheme - she ran a chain of barber shops in London. I also had to write in 'Abbey National' as the pension company, even though I have no idea if it was them. The form would not proceed without these details though.

They do a search in all these areas. However, the key search they do is by NI number. Pensions are registered under your NI number. So, if you contracted out using an appropriate personal pension (APPP) then it would show there.

If the Abbey National were involved would I not have received paper work over the years?

Irrespective of who was involved, you would have received an annual statement and initial documentation.

wildballoonlady

Many thanks again. The online form I just filled in did not ask me for my NI number.

During the 1980s & half of the 1990s I worked full time as a hairdresser. I definitely had no private pension scheme set up in those days, neither did my then hairdressing boss provide a work pension.

I Then stopped work in 1996 while I got a teaching degree. By 1999 I had a Teacher's Pension. To my knowledge I didn't transfer the opted out SERPS from some place else to the Teacher's Pension.

Do you think the Pension Service people might trace my original opting out, who it was with and where it ended up?

dunstonh

You were possibly never contracted out? If you are not working you get no rebates and if you are in the teachers scheme, that is contracted out and takes priority.

were you self employed as hair dresser or low earner?

wildballoonlady

I was not self employed as a hairdresser but possibly a low earner. How would o know if I hasn't actually opted out after all? Many thanks for your help.

xylophone

http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/ni/intro/check-record.htm
Any help here?

wildballoonlady

Thanks xylophone. I've just used that link to trace my national insurance contributions as far back as 1989 & submitted it. I tried the state pension forecast form too, but for some reason it wouldn't let me type in certain letters?

I've gone back to the Pension Service site and refilled the form about tracing lost pensions, with a lot more detail this time eg my NI number and that I wasn't paying into a private or company pension in the early 1990s.

I would still like to know how I can find out if I didn't actually opt out.