BT Pension Scheme (C) 100% Clawback???

ursusltd

Hi,

My wife took early retirement from BT in April 2017 after being offered it but she only had a matter of days to make up her mind. We did the sums and found it would be "do-able" so she took it.

We have been reading about pension clawback recently, where a company reduces their pension once you reach state pension age. This has worried us so we contacted BT via phone after an email query went unanswered.

She was told that every pound earned from state pension would be taken off her BT pension - 100% of it. When we did our sums we took into account our state pensions as a part of that, even though they were a few years from payment.

Quite alarming to think we will be £8k+ a year worse off than we thought but somehow this does not sound right. We have googled as much as we can but can find nothing to substantiate this.

Can anyone help? Is this correct?

Many thanks

Lou

Madeinireland

Hi Lou,

There is some clawback but nothing like the 100% of state pension you have mentioned It relates to BT the time when you worked for BT after 2009 when BT paid for you to be contracted back into NI contributions. As an example I will have a clawback of about £1000 per annum on a £30k pension and I worked from 2009 to August 2017.

The pension help desk will tell you how much - I think it’s called State Pension offset.

Regards...

Dox

It doesn't sound right because it isn't right! Nothing like that draconian.

Write to the scheme administrators and ask them to clarify the position - that will do much to set your mind at rest.

ursusltd

Madeinireland wrote: »

Hi Lou,

There is some clawback but nothing like the 100% of state pension you have mentioned It relates to BT the time when you worked for BT after 2009 when BT paid for you to be contracted back into NI contributions. As an example I will have a clawback of about £1000 per annum on a £30k pension and I worked from 2009 to August 2017.

The pension help desk will tell you how much - I think it’s called State Pension offset.

Regards...

Thanks - It was the pension helpdesk who gave my wife the info! We are still waiting for written confirmation

ursusltd

Dox wrote: »

It doesn't sound right because it isn't right! Nothing like that draconian.

Write to the scheme administrators and ask them to clarify the position - that will do much to set your mind at rest.

We will, it's been very unsettling to say the least!

Thanks

Catswhiska

My hubby took BT early retirement at 50 almost 12 years ago. We live off his pension of £8000 per year. Will this be reduced at State Pension age. He has 33 years NI contributions?

Madeinireland

No as he left before 2009.

xylophone

My hubby took BT early retirement at 50 almost 12 years ago.

Has he obtained a new state pension forecast?

https://www.gov.uk/check-state-pension

At 6/4/16, two calculations would have been done to establish his "starting amount" for state pension.

£119.30 + (Additional State Pension - deduction for contracting out).

(33/35 X £155.65) - Contracted Out Pension Equivalent.

His starting amount was the higher of the two.

It is possible that he will need to make voluntary contributions to qualify for a full new state pension.

The Pension Forecast will clarify.

tigerspill

Are you referring that is being called the Offset. Introduced during the 2009 BTPA changes where we started paying S2P. It is only this bit stops and is replaced with the SP. Problem is that since 2016, and the single tier pension - the value on which this Offset was calculated stopped.
I have been unable to understand how it is now calculated.
So it isn't the whole SP, just the Offset bit.
I have been give hugely incorrect information from BTPS (Accenture) recently. I am glad I have done all my own research.

camelopardis

I have 2 seperate BT Section B pensions. One for service between 1983-2004 before I was TUPE'd out, and another much smaller one for 2013-2016 when I was TUPE'd back in before I took early retirement.


Am I right in thinking the offset won't affect my earlier section B. but only the later one?

ursusltd

Many thanks for the replies to our query. The only way to get a proper answer was to raise a complaint, even that took ages but we have at last, a proper figure - and it's not as scary as the original 100%

:j