Totally confused over pension

poppasmurf_bewdley

My cousin died suddenly very recently. He lived with his partner in a council flat.

He worked full time, she part time, and she had a lazy sod of a son who didn't work at all but spent his time in the bedroom playing on the computer.

My cousin payed all the rent and bills, and her money was hers to do what she wanted.

When he died, her predicament finally dawned on her.

He didn't leave a will and any money he had is going to his children from his marriage. She's not got a penny.

She has now had to get a full time job, and she has finally dragged the lazy little brat out of his room and threatened him with eviction if he didn't get a job pdq.

All this is because they didn't check (a) what would happen if someone died, and (b) do something about it.

margaretclare

gorgeousgeorge wrote: »

Can anyone give me some advice on whether I should be claiming anything or not? As totally confused
Thank you

You'd need to claim in your own right, not via your partner. His pension is his own. As someone else has pointed out, it's no longer possible to claim an addition for a non-working 'dependent'. It has never been possible to claim extra pension for an unmarried dependent.

It seems to me that you're in the worst possible state of affairs. Not working, so not building up your own pension entitlement. Not claiming in respect of your illness/disability so no income of your own and again, not building up a future pension entitlement. If you made a claim based on your illness - used to be called sickness benefit, no idea what it's called now - you would gain credits to build up your future pension entitlement.

Not married, you don't gain any of the rights that, even now, still go with being married. And finally, your partner is a lot older than you.

'He's old-fashioned, wanted to support me, didn't want me to work'...... so, you've been left with the worst of everything. He hasn't had your best interests at heart, has he?

The only possible bright spot is that the house was in your name originally, he moved in. Please, please tell me that it is still in your name, not in his? Because if it's in his name then you could be homeless as well as money-less when he dies.

seven-day-weekend

You will hopefully have had Child Benefit in your name. That will have built you up some entitlement to State Retirement Pension.

You still have twenty years to go before your State Retirement age to build up more entitlement, even if you have to pay Voluntary Contributions.

Get a Pension Statement here: https://www.gov.uk/state-pension-statement . This should tell you how many years' NI you have already.

Do it, PDQ. What margaret Clare says is unfortunately correct.

HB58

margaretclare wrote: »

If you made a claim based on your illness - used to be called sickness benefit, no idea what it's called now - you would gain credits to build up your future pension entitlement.

I don't think the OP would be eligible for ESA as she has no NI contributions and she is unlikely to meet the means test criteria. Therefore she could not open an ESA claim and she would not get NI credits.

BTW, I totally agree with the rest of your post!

patman99

Op, when you said "no children. Both grown up". Did you mean that you have 2 grown-up children (either from this, or a previous relationship)?.

This is important. As I found out when doing pension forecasts for myself (worked 25 years (if I take out my periods of unemployment)) and my spouse (worked for only 13 years i total).
I have 25 years worth of pension contribs, whilst the spouse has 31. This is because you get full NI contribs (which go towards to your pension) if you get child benefit.

We have a son who remained in education until he was 18, so she had 18 years worth of full NI contribs without having to lift a finger.

Pleaseadvise

patman99 wrote: »

This is because you get full NI contribs (which go towards to your pension) if you get child benefit.

I believe you only get the NI contributions whilst you're getting child benefit for a child under 12 nowadays. See here - http://www.nidirect.gov.uk/getting-credits-towards-your-state-pension

sheramber

The OP would be creditted according to the rules in force while she recieved benefit not the current rules.

margaretclare

Thanks to all for the clarifications.

What I would still like to know is - in whose name is the house tenancy? The OP or her partner?

If she was misguided enough to have it transferred into his name because 'he was the breadwinner', or some such, she could be in an extremely dodgy position if/when he dies first.

dodger1

margaretclare wrote: »

Thanks to all for the clarifications.

What I would still like to know is - in whose name is the house tenancy? The OP or her partner?

If she was misguided enough to have it transferred into his name because 'he was the breadwinner', or some such, she could be in an extremely dodgy position if/when he dies first.

See post 19.

HB58

gorgeousgeorge wrote: »

No he doesn't own house we live in, it's social housing, and just in my name as I lived here before we became a couple 18 years ago.

Glad to see that this, at least, is in your name!