Transfer/inheritance of pension?

Letsgetreal

Can anyone help with this?

My father died a couple of years ago having worked for the Post Office all his life. He was retired on a fairly large PO pension - which presumably had a sizable pension pot funding it.

He was divorced and I am his only child. He had no dependants.

I was not an executor of his will (his brother was) and I had a minimal relationship with the rest of his family.

However there was no mention of who would benefit (if anyone) from his pension in his will, and I have been informed that any transfer of pension related assets would fall outside his estate anyway (for inheritance purposes).

The PO pension department will not talk to me because I dont have his NI number or pension account number.

So my question is - what would have happened to any pension benefits after his death. Specifically would anyone have been entitled to any pension payments from his scheme and what about any lump sum entitlement, as I have been informed that the pension pot itself may have been transferable?

Any help appreciated.

Daniel54

Letsgetreal wrote: »

So my question is - what would have happened to any pension benefits after his death. Specifically would anyone have been entitled to any pension payments from his scheme and what about any lump sum entitlement, as I have been informed that the pension pot itself may have been transferable?

You have been misinformed

It would have been a defined benefit pension and as such there is no individual "pot".There would have been a continuing reduced pension to hs spouse,if he had one,but nothing to any adult non dependent children.He may have taken a lump sum when he took his pension ,but nothing is payable on his death

So the answer from your point of view is that his pension benefits died with him .

sandsy

It was probably a defined benefits pension which, as he was divorced, dies with him.

He didn't have a pension pot specific to him - he had a promise to pay benefits of a specific amount for the rest of his life.

Letsgetreal

Thanks - looking at the PO pensions website there is a lump sum payout if within 5 years of the commencement of NRA 65 or NRA 60 benefits.

As he was retired many years I guess he was outside this window.

jamesd

Yes, in this case probably nothing to pay.

It is right that modern pensions outside the public sector are inheritable. These include almost all personal pensions and work defined benefit pensions. However, often at retirement these are used to buy an annuity and an annuity normally has neither death benefits nor transferability, except possibly an obligation to pay the pension for at least five or ten years. If no income has been taken the whole pension pot is normally inheritable completely tax free. If income has been taken using income drawdown instead of buying an annuity that would also be inheritable, though with some tax cost.

The alternative older type is defined benefit, often final salary or average salary types. Of these, the ones with least to pay out tend to be in the public sector or former public sector. In the private schemes there's often at least a little death benefit payable.

As the only child you'd normally be expected to be the main beneficiary if there was no will. The executor would normally have an obligation to report to all beneficiaries about what they did. If you didn't get such an accounting you might consider asking his brother now that some time has passed, explaining that you've recovered somewhat from the initial grief and that it will help with closure for you to know what finally happened.

Alternatively, if you just don't speak much and didn't already know what the will said, you could start by seeking a copy of the will and probate documents. I'm not sure what, if anything, the probate documents might add, there might be some accounting of what happened to the estate, or not.

ExBT_Bob

Letsgetreal wrote: »

Can anyone help with this?

My father died a couple of years ago having worked for the Post Office all his life. He was retired on a fairly large PO pension - which presumably had a sizable pension pot funding it.

He was divorced and I am his only child. He had no dependants.

I was not an executor of his will (his brother was) and I had a minimal relationship with the rest of his family.

However there was no mention of who would benefit (if anyone) from his pension in his will, and I have been informed that any transfer of pension related assets would fall outside his estate anyway (for inheritance purposes).

The PO pension department will not talk to me because I dont have his NI number or pension account number.

So my question is - what would have happened to any pension benefits after his death. Specifically would anyone have been entitled to any pension payments from his scheme and what about any lump sum entitlement, as I have been informed that the pension pot itself may have been transferable?

Any help appreciated.

http://www.royalmailpensionplan.co.uk/


You would benefit by knowing the scheme he was in, but possibly Section B