LGPS Early Payment of deferred pension

coroner

Good afternoon.I hope some of your LGPS experts may be able to assist.My wife has  a deferred LGPS  in England.Her normal retirement age is 67 but we need to apply for early payment due to her having left work to care for her elderly and frail mother .Her only additional source of income is a weekly carers allowance payment of £67.00 .We would like to write to her former employer to  request early unreduced payment of the pension  on compassionate grounds due to exceptional circumstances .Can any one advise under which regulation the   ex employer can consider our request  so that we can quote the regulation in the letter.Many thanks.

Silvertabby

Payment of unreduced benefits on compassionate grounds is at the (ex) employer's discretion, rather in accordance with  LGPS regulations.  You should be able to find a copy of this online, under your specific LGPS.

Assuming that your wife is over 55, she no longer needs her employer's permission to access her deferred benefits, but they would be subject to early payment reductions.  The request for unreduced payment on compassionate grounds is where the employer discretion comes in, as the ex-employer would have to pay a hefty amount of strain costs.  

The only way to find out if the ex-employer is willing to do this would be for your wife to submit her written application.  However, I have to say that in 20 years I've only personally known 2 successful applications go through.

If your wife is under 55 then I'm afraid it's a non-starter.

coroner

Thank you Silvertabby .Would she write to her ex employer first or to the pension fund.Many thanks

Silvertabby

To her ex employer.  They will consider her request,  then instruct the LGPS to offer unreduced benefits if her application is successful.

Note that this will take some time, as the employer's process will include obtaining strain costs from the pension administrators.

chiefie

Good luck - I think your old employer would have to take the strain of this. Fingers crossed for you 

TVAS

In your dreams. By all means write because don't ask don't get. The answer will be no because they have no money. Final salary pension schemes are already extremely expensive to fund by the employer and you are asking for an early pension?  As your mother in law elderly and frail she will die soon which means your wife can go back to work. Also you have an income. No mention if the mother in law has property and other assets that your wife will inherit. Also doesn't mother in law have a pension? If there are 2 properties why not sell one and move mother in law into yours less running costs?

Silvertabby

TVAS - you are probably right to say that this application won't be approved, but there's no need to be so rude and judgemental ! 

elouise01582

LGPS is not a normal final salary scheme either TVAS!

TVAS

You call it rude and judgemental I call it blunt. We seem to want something for nothing these days I call it freeloading. LGPS is a normal final salary scheme bloody expensive to run and paid for by my bloody council tax. Has she been in ill health fair enough but she isn't in ill health. Judgemental? She didn't sound destitute the husband had an income no mention of the mother in law income or assets. It did not seem like hardship which is what the compassionate grounds is for not for people suffering a drop in income. We love molly coddling people instead of telling them how it is. When we have to increase taxes to pay for decent stuff like unemployment benefit, good hospital and education we are reluctant then we whinge when it is crap. Lots of people have been on benefits for the first time due to Covid 19 and they are truly shocked how low it is if we want higher unemployment benefits we have to pay for it. All of us, you and me.