What Benefits at 60?

gadgetmind

mumps wrote: »

I think the OPs retirement age was raised from 60 in the 1995 legislation but not to 65 so the second lot of changes has added more than 4 months to her retirement age. I would be glad to hear the answer.

The answer is that "retirement age" and "state pension age" are as different as you want them to be. I want them to be very different for myself but you're free to make your own choices.

hugheskevi

My humble and unprofessional opinion is that I don't think that 1954 was announced 15 years ago (I agree equalising to age 65 was). I think 1954 was only announced a few years ago (I'd be interested to know definitively if anyone can post? )

The changes were first 'announced' in the Conservative manifesto in April 2010. By October 2011 the final policy had taken shape.

I think it would have been fairer to stagger by postponing womens' retirement age by only one year over a larger age group and not victimise a small 1954 group - Why us? when if you'd been born a month earlier you'd have been fine.

A key point is equality. This was the reason female State Pension age was initially increased. As I understand it, under European equality laws although an unequal situation does not have to be immediately corrected it cannot be worsened. That means male state pension age cannot be increased until female state pension age has caught up. Hence to make expenditure savings it is necessary to accelerate the increase in female state pension age.

That therefore means a trade-off between how soon people are affected and the speed of transition. The balance chosen was that no-one would be affected before 2016, and the adjustment would be linear thereafter.

The 1954 group also get clobbered with the reduced pension so instead of receiving circa £200 per week, we'll just get £145 and only 5 years to try to make up that difference ourselves.

Where does £200 per week come from?

Given the transitional arrangements, this group will lose little if anything.

But if I accept it was 15 years, that isn't long to change 25 years worth of planning especially given the recent lack of returns on investments and savings.

A change of 18 months at £120 p/w state pension is a total of £9,360 loss. Divided over 15 years that is £624 p/a (ignoring returns, inflation, etc). Or an extra 8 months working at a typical wage. Or a combination of both (4 months longer work, £312 saving per year).

Given those numbers, if that isn't long enough, policy will always be in transition and never get to its destination. Mind you, many would say that is exactly how our pension policy exists, but that's another story

jem16

Dimey wrote: »

My humble and unprofessional opinion is that I don't think that 1954 was announced 15 years ago (I agree equalising to age 65 was). I think 1954 was only announced a few years ago (I'd be interested to know definitively if anyone can post? )

In 1995 it was announced that starting from April 2010, women's state pension age would gradually rise from age 60 to age 65. For anyone born in 1954 their state pension age would be somewhere between 63yrs 9mths and 64yrs 8mths.

http://www.mycompanypension.co.uk/Table-of-female-State-Pension-Age-Factsheets

From October 2010 those plans were revised again with more changes happening throughout 2011.

http://www.web40571.clarahost.co.uk/statepensionage/SPA_history.htm

The 1954 group also get clobbered with the reduced pension so instead of receiving circa £200 per week, we'll just get £145 and only 5 years to try to make up that difference ourselves.

All those years of paying in extra Graduated, Serps and S2P and we'll get nothing for it.

That's not happening though. There will be a transition period where what you would get under the old system is compared with what you would get under the new system. You will get the higher of the two. So anyone due to get £200pw with SERPS/S2P will still get it.

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/210299/single-tier-valuation-contracting-out.pdf

Torry_Quine

gadgetmind wrote: »

The answer is that "retirement age" and "state pension age" are as different as you want them to be. I want them to be very different for myself but you're free to make your own choices.

While that is of course accurate, I don't know anyone who has retired or plans to before state pension age other than due to ill-health.

For many working people there is no way they could afford to retire early.

gadgetmind

Torry_Quine wrote: »

While that is of course accurate, I don't know anyone who has retired or plans to before state pension age other than due to ill-health.

Whereas I know a whole load who have including many on very low wages. It's because anecdotes are so variable that we have statistics to bring us the desired accuracy.

Torry_Quine

gadgetmind wrote: »

Whereas I know a whole load who have including many on very low wages. It's because anecdotes are so variable that we have statistics to bring us the desired accuracy.

I genuinely don't know how someone on a low wage could ever afford to have enough money to retire early.

seven-day-weekend

Torry_Quine wrote: »

While that is of course accurate, I don't know anyone who has retired or plans to before state pension age other than due to ill-health.

For many working people there is no way they could afford to retire early.

Whilst agreeing that many people can't afford to retire early, most people I know who haven't retired early have chosen to continue working and could have retired early if they had chosen.

Dimey

Thanks Hueskevi & JEM16.

The £200 ish per week comes from what friends of mine are getting this year who's contribution records are similar to mine - Over 40 yrs no breaks and Graduated, Serps & S2P paid.

Thanks for all the references. I do get a different story every time I contact HMRC/DWP. The latest is that the flat rate £145 is all I'll get and no allowance for GRad/Serp/S2P. The HMRC admit the info they give me is guesswork as they say that they actually don't really know the new rules and won't be briefed by the Government for another year or so. They also warned me that by the time I (born 1954) get to 65, the state pension age will have increased to 68.

CFC

Dimey wrote: »

Thanks Hueskevi & JEM16.

The £200 ish per week comes from what friends of mine are getting this year who's contribution records are similar to mine - Over 40 yrs no breaks and Graduated, Serps & S2P paid.

Thanks for all the references. I do get a different story every time I contact HMRC/DWP. The latest is that the flat rate £145 is all I'll get and no allowance for GRad/Serp/S2P. The HMRC admit the info they give me is guesswork as they say that they actually don't really know the new rules and won't be briefed by the Government for another year or so. They also warned me that by the time I (born 1954) get to 65, the state pension age will have increased to 68.

We'll all be dead soon by the time we are pension age. That's what the government is relying on! Dunstonh's words of wisdom of 68 being the new 58 is fantasy I am afraid. Ok if you were born middle class or got lucky in life, but for most people you'll get a couple of years on the pension then drop dead....still at least the extra working years will reverse the trend of longevity - that's the plan!

Dunstonh is also in fantasy land from the perspective of jobs....because age discrimination is still alive and kicking and will be for years to come. Unless you want to operate a check out.

Torry_Quine

seven-day-weekend wrote: »

Whilst agreeing that many people can't afford to retire early, most people I know who haven't retired early have chosen to continue working and could have retired early if they had chosen.

I think it's also a mind-set as many working-class people don't really think of retiring before state pension age as a possibility.