Should I be worried

p00hsticks

anfirmor said:

Yes I’ve checked my state pension forecast and I have enough years in the bag for a full state pension, when I get there.

Just to be absolutely clear - you are saying that your pension forecast is currently telling you that 'your forecast is £185.15 (or more), you cannot improve your forecast any more' ? We get quite a few people on these boards who think that if they have the 35 years that lazy journalists refer to then they will automatically get a full state pension, and that's not necessarily the case at present due to the transitional rules for those who started their working life unfer the old scheme.

anfirmor

Sorry for the lack of clarity.

I have just checked again on gov.org again

40 years of contributions. 37 years full. 
3 years with some gaps. Only details for one which only had 3 weeks contributions. I was in Ireland enjoying life.

Gov pension forecast is £185.15 a week and states I cannot improve my forecast.

Audaxer

anfirmor said:

Sorry for the lack of clarity.

I have just checked again on gov.org again

40 years of contributions. 37 years full. 
3 years with some gaps. Only details for one which only had 3 weeks contributions. I was in Ireland enjoying life.

Gov pension forecast is £185.15 a week and states I cannot improve my forecast.

I also can't improve my forecast beyond £185.15, but I still need to make voluntary contributions for the next few years as my current estimate based on NI contributions to 5 April 2021 is around £169.  Does your forecast have a line that shows your 'Estimate based on NI contributions to 5 April 2021' (or it might now show to 5 April 2022)?

anfirmor

Audaxer

It is based on
my records up to 5th April 2022. 

Audaxer

anfirmor said:

Audaxer

It is based on
my records up to 5th April 2022. 

That is a good if you are already at the maximum amount after only 37 years of full contributions. The reason I asked is that many people think they have reached the maximum, but don't realise that they still need to make further years contributions to actually reach their forecast value.

[Deleted User]

Hi  Just to add that I find the state pension and NI contribution statements on govt gateway website VERY confusing and contradictory.

On one page  I am being told that I have made 39 full years (1983 to 2022) of contributions up to April 2022 and that I have earnt the max £185.15.

However the link to the  contracted out section refers to ...well quite frankly a load of gobbledegook re another or replacement pension.  I could make no sense of this so rang up one lunchtime......62 mins wait to speak to a human.......who understood my confusion and concern re whether my contracted out years had affected my SP entitlement.  I stressed that the SP formed a key part of my retirement planning and so I needed to know de facto info as per current rules......that seemed a fair ask to me.

The human confirmed that as of June 2022 I have already made all the required contributions to get the full SP of 185.15 applying the current rules and that I can not increase my pension in anyway except  I choose to defer taking it.  So good news for me but my god it was hard work getting there.  I taped the dialogue on mp3 for posterity.

I gave feedback that the website was ridiculous contradictory and confusing and required urgent improvement.......he agreed.

anfirmor

I’ve just tried to read and understand the Gov’s website re the new state pension. It’s as clear as mud to me. I can’t answer why my forecast states that I have enough qualifying years for the full £185.15 and cannot improve that. I was going to post a link to the .gov page but I’m not sure who among the uninitiated it would help?

I’m going to find out more now though, in case that forecast is a presumption.

xylophone

On 6/4/ 16 (inception of NSP), two calculations were done to establish each individual's "starting/foundation amount" for NSP.

Old Rules

NI years/30 (max) x £119.30 (Full Basic) + (Additional State Pension - (if applicable) Deduction for Contracting Out.

New Rules

NI years/35 (max) x £155.65 (Full NSP) - (if applicable) Contracted Out Pension Equivalent.

The "starting/foundation amount" was the higher of the two.

See https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/181237/single-tier-pension-fact-sheet.pdf

 a sort of "Janet and John" guide which was produced by the govt. a couple of years before inception of NSP to explain how it would work.

• You could be in three positions: your foundation amount could be equal to, more than or less than the full single-tier pension. Please read on for more details. 

xylophone

whether my contracted out years had affected my SP entitlement. 

What is the COPE shown on your forecast?

It was used once only to establish your "starting/foundation amount" as explained above.

Audaxer

[Deleted User] said:

The human confirmed that as of June 2022 I have already made all the required contributions to get the full SP of 185.15 applying the current rules and that I can not increase my pension in anyway except  I choose to defer taking it.  So good news for me but my god it was hard work getting there.  I taped the dialogue on mp3 for posterity.

I gave feedback that the website was ridiculous contradictory and confusing and required urgent improvement.......he agreed.

I can understand it must have been confusing at the time, but you are definitely in a very good position to have been contracted out (meaning your DB pension will have been increased) but you have still got to the maximum amount of the new State Pension, without having to make any additional years of voluntary contributions.