Pension at 57+

FXR

Hi,

I already have a occupational pension after 25 years with Civil Service. Its not a huge amount (and certainly not "Gold Plated" as the media would have you believe!!)

In 2014 I returned to work and I am now employed by NHS Scotland.

Since the outset in 2014 I have contributed to the NHS Superannuation Scheme. I pay around £70 per month. Its an Average Salary scheme.

I feel I am paying quite a hefty sum each month and wonder if, at my age, its a good idea to continue paying into the scheme or do something else with my 70 quid per month.:beer::beer::beer:

Grateful for some thoughts and advice.

TIA

maximumgardener

maybe buy some Lottery tickets or put it on the 2:30 at Ayr races?

seriously though 70 pounds per month will not get you much of a Pension from NHS but at least you would get something!! depends how long you intend working/ contributing?

consider increasing the amount. what % is 70 of your monthly nett pay??

good luck

Silvertabby

Short term, a career average pension scheme is probably better than a final salary scheme. You'd be daft to give it up - you'd be saying 'no ta' not only to the tax relief on your £70, but also your employer's contributions - which are likely to be twice the amount you pay in. Plus don't forget the death in service benefits - if you opt out you may need to pay for some sort of private policy instead.

Guessing that your contribution rate is 6%, that makes your annual salary £14K . The accrual rate of the NHS pension is 1/54th so, after one year, your penson would be £14/54 = £259.26. Multipy that by the number of years worked (less early payment reduction if you retire before 65/State pension age), add on the annual revaluation (CPI), and that's your index linked pension for life.

'Gold Plated' just means that the scheme is secure, and that your pension is guaranteed for life - not that the pension is a whopping amount.

xj650t

Look at the £70pm as a cup of coffee per day and it's not so bad. £70 is by no means a hefty amount, it depends on what portion of your salary that is. To get more out you would obviously need to put more in. Stop putting money in now and you can expect to not receive very much. Is your civil service and state pension going to be enough to live of in retirement, or would you like a little bit more?

I'd take slight issue with the not gold plated. If you look at what you will receive from the Civil Service pension, and what you'd need to save in a defined contribution pension to get the same result, you may well feel a bit light headed.

PensionTech

Keep paying in. You may not think these kinds of pensions are gold plated but it's a hell of a lot better than you'll get if you put that £70/month in a private pension, ISA or pretty much anything else. If you're unimpressed by the pension you've accrued so far, then I would suggest it's even more important for you to keep saving, as you'll need all you can get in retirement.

By the way - it's not a hefty amount you're putting in, not at all. I put 15% of my salary into a pension at the moment and it's likely I still won't get close to the kind of pension you're building up with what I assume, given your figures, is a 5-6% contribution into your DB. That is why people say they're so valuable - because you get so much more out than you put in.

PeacefulWaters

The taxpayer would love you not to bother with this.

How much income will your £70 a month generate? Is it based on 60ths or 80ths?

Service / 60 X average salary = amount worth having.

dunstonh

I already have a occupational pension after 25 years with Civil Service. Its not a huge amount (and certainly not "Gold Plated" as the media would have you believe!!)

If you do not recognise the value of it then you do not understand it. It is gold plated.

I feel I am paying quite a hefty sum each month and wonder if, at my age, its a good idea to continue paying into the scheme or do something else with my 70 quid per month.

Nothing will come close to matching the benefits you will get from a measly £70pm contribution. To give you an indication if you wanted to get a similar outcome to the NHS pension from alternatives, it would take over a quarter of your take home pay to do that.

You have a highly valuable pension that most people would love to have. Don't let your lack of knowledge and understanding lead to a bad decision by you. Try and understand what you have and you will then realise how good the pension you have is.

maximumgardener

so you will understand now OP..... that you should be doing probably the opposite of what you are considering!

keep your Nhs pension going and keep paying as much as you are allowed or can afford

your query reminds me of a recent conversation with my Niece also concerning her NHS pension.
its true tho many people do not understand the value of having these pensions!!

FXR

Thanks for the replies.

My current % on pay is about 5.3. And, yrs, it is correct to say it isnt hefty. Dont forget though that "hefty" is relative comparex to payments to my CS pension which was then non contributory.

As for the "gold plated" bit the non contribution was catered for by again relatively low pay increases over the years. And they screwed me for 30k when I collected due to changing the rules which I signed up to 25 years before.

....but thats another story.

I await feedback from my NHS Pensions Admin to see what my 5.3% will bring in 5-10 years time.

Thanks for all the comments. Very helpful

GunJack

10/54 x £14000 = £2592-ish a year plus whatever lump sum is attached...doesn't sound too bad for £70 a month...

PeacefulWaters

FXR wrote: »

Thanks for the replies.

My current % on pay is about 5.3. And, yrs, it is correct to say it isnt hefty. Dont forget though that "hefty" is relative comparex to payments to my CS pension which was then non contributory.

As for the "gold plated" bit the non contribution was catered for by again relatively low pay increases over the years. And they screwed me for 30k when I collected due to changing the rules which I signed up to 25 years before.

....but thats another story.

I await feedback from my NHS Pensions Admin to see what my 5.3% will bring in 5-10 years time.

Thanks for all the comments. Very helpful

It's a no brainer to stay in and carry on paying.