Teachers pension terrible customer service

Flower4156

The problem is that he was teaching not for a long time and therefore the longer he works - the better pension he was supposed to get. This is why he did not retire at 60. He was planning to retire after he finished his contract with an academy not aware that TP opinion was that he was supposed to retire in September 2014. You are right - he was made redundant with premature pension benefits which were so small that he was not sure whether to take them at all.

hyubh

Flower4156 wrote: »

The problem is that he was teaching not for a long time and therefore the longer he works - the better pension he was supposed to get.

Why only 'supposed'? He accrued more reckonable service than otherwise, and so earned a better pension.

He was planning to retire after he finished his contract with an academy not aware that TP opinion was that he was supposed to retire in September 2014. You are right - he was made redundant with premature pension benefits

How could he have been unaware of being granted a premature retirement? The previous employer would have made a conscious decision to grant it.

which were so small that he was not sure whether to take them at all.

So he was aware that a premature retirement had been given? As for 'so small' - the TPS is one of the most generous pension schemes around. If he didn't have much service, then naturally, he wouldn't be retiring on a big pension in absolute terms, but that doesn't make the pension 'small' in terms of generosity.

Nevertheless, if with little service the pension earned is indeed not large relative to the pensionable pay ('salary of reference') used to calculate his benefits, then your fears of abatement seem distinctly unfounded.

Flower4156

We are waiting for TP to confirm pension benefits, salary of reference and then we will know more. My point is no matter what - my husband is currently at risk of abatement until the end of this financial year because of misleading and confusing advice from TP. He did not take his premature pension benefits, did not take his normal teacher pension, was advised that he can retire in September 2015 - only to be informed now that he MUST to retire September 2014 a putting him under serious risk of abatement as he is working full time and cannot get out from this contract u till next September.

hyubh

Flower4156 wrote: »

My point is no matter what - my husband is currently at risk of abatement until the end of this financial year because of misleading and confusing advice from TP.

No, he's 'at risk of abatement' because the scheme has long-established abatement provisions, and TP will be doing their job in enforcing them if applicable. Like I said before however - if his pension is 'so small' (i.e., with not much service behind it), what makes you think abatement is imminent?

He did not take his premature pension benefits,

If he was granted a 'premature retirement' then surely they were due by definition!

was advised that he can retire in September 2015 - only to be informed now that he MUST to retire September 2014

Sounds like a miscommunication between employer and administrator, i.e. the former had initially failed to report that a premature retirement had been granted. And yet your husband had always realised one had been...?

Flower4156

My husband told to teachers pension that he is going to be made redundant and will be granted premature retirement benefits from May 2014. They said nothing that he must retire after August 2014 and in fact he was advised by the school that if he does not want to retire - do not send application form.this what he did.

Dunnit

I wonder if terminology similar to Civil Servants is relevant here. As a CS I cannot retire I must resign as there is no retirement date. If your are under your normal pension payment date then there are a number of options for taking it early with reduction etc. If you are past your normal pension payment date then your pension will be paid - there is no apparent other option.
It sounds as if someone has assumed that you would have to apply for a pension while the rules state that it will be paid.
I can understand your angst at this time as something which used to be straight forward has now been complicated.