Widows Pension Help

ger2000

Hi Posters, I currently receive a Forces pension that will be index linked when I turn 55. When this time arrives I will also receive a police pension. The questions is what will my wife receive if I go first!Is it a percentage of my/our pensions? Would she need to apply for this?

kidmugsy

The first questions are: do the schemes know she exists? Do they have an up-to-date address for you both?

As for the widow's pension, that will be an unambiguous part of your T&Cs: check them, on the web if needs be. Commonly, the widow's pension will be 50% of the pensioner's.

Also, if it might be attractive, check whether your schemes offer "Allocation" whereby you'd sacrifice part of your pension so that your widow gets a bigger pension. This might make sense for a couple where the husband (say) is much better pensioned than the wife.