Pension Help Please !

LEMMONY

Hi , I have £973 in total in the Church Workers Pension Fund from 1995.
I sent in all the information they requested as I wanted to draw it out under the new rules .I was disappointed today when I received a letter saying I couldn't as it is in the Defined Benefit Scheme .They say as I am not in the Defined Contribution Scheme I can't have it .
I honestly haven't got a clue what this means .I am aged 59 and was hoping to use the money for dental work I need .


Does anyone know what this means ? do I have any options ?


many thanks
L.

kidmugsy

It means that it was a final salary scheme, so you will be due a pension the size of which is related to your final salary and years of service. The new rules do not apply to this kind of pension.

Mind you, in that case "I have £973 in total" makes no sense. Can you quote exactly what it says?

LEMMONY

Hi, and thanks for replying. In todays letter it doesn't actually say £973 , that's the amount that's always been quoted in an annual statement .I left the church in '95 and am retired now .So this means I will get a tiny amount each year from when they tell me my retirement age is ? such a shame as would be more useful now !!
that's the full amount in the pension , it's not per year.

xylophone

https://www.churchofengland.org/media/1345064/dbs%20booklet%20v3.3.pdf

Your scheme booklet.

You have a deferred pension. - page 11.

You have a Guaranteed Minimum Pension? Page 14.

Are you male or female?

What is your scheme pension age?

atush

Why aren't you seeking out an NHS dentist?

Ask them for a CETV value, but you really need to give us details.

xylophone

Why aren't you seeking out an NHS dentist?

NHS dentistry is not free except in certain cases.

http://www.nhs.uk/chq/Pages/1781.aspx?CategoryID=74

It may be that the work required is not offered on the NHS.

LEMMONY

Yes the work I need doing is complicated unfortunately and beyond the average dentists capability .
I will try to answer your q's - I am female , I have no idea what scheme pension age is ,I have hardly any paperwork from them .I can e mail and ask them .The letter says I can transfer to another provider via the open market option , but I'm not sure that helps.
L.

mania112

You will have the option within the scheme to take a cash sum - which reduces the annual payments. The only way to know what those sums are is by asking them directly.

Alternatively, you can ask for a CETV (Cash Equivalent Transfer Value) and see what the TOTAL value of your pension would be if you were to move it to a Personal Pension. The benefits of this are limited in comparison to what you'll have within the Church Workers Pension, but at least you can have access to a larger sum in the short term.

LEMMONY

Thanks everyone for replying .I have found an e mail address now and I will ask those questions you have suggested .Will report back when I get a result !
thanks again for your time
L.

xylophone

Have you had a look at your scheme booklet - see link in my post above.

Presumably you receive regular statements - is your scheme pension age not shown?

Do you have a Scheme Summary specific to your late employment?

xylophone

For future planning, have you requested a new state pension statement?

http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/pensions/article-2942928/Over-55s-apply-new-state-pension-forecasts-DWP.html