Death and Pension unavailable

Bencook19

Hey everybody

i hope you could help me and my brothers

Our Dad passed away a month ago, he had paid in to his national insurance and work pension for 47 years
and passed away at 64

we have been told that we cannot have access to his pension
and the only person who can is his spouse; his wife/our mum 

However she passed away 4 years a go, and now we’ve been told that we cannot have access to this?

surely this is not true?

thank you for your help
Ben

Bencook19

Hey everybody

i hope you could help me and my brothers

Our Dad passed away a month ago, he had paid in to his national insurance and work pension for 47 years
and passed away at 64

we have been told that we cannot have access to his pension
and the only person who can is his spouse; his wife/our mum 

However she passed away 4 years a go, and now we’ve been told that we cannot have access to this?

surely this is not true?

thank you for your help
Ben

kayleighali

I believe (and someone can correct me if I am wrong) that it is entirely dependent on the pension scheme T&C.

I know with mine, we have a Death in Service benefit that is paid out upon our death to the nominated person and any remaining pension amount is ONLY paid to a spouse, not a surviving child

Nearlyold

Had your late father started receiving pension payments from his work pension?

Do you know the pension scheme name?

Silvertabby

My sympathies to you all.

It depends on the pension scheme rules.  It's fairly standard for DB/final salary schemes to only pay survivor's pensions to spouses and/or children up to the age of 18 (23 if still in full time education).  

Can you say what type of works pension your father had, and how long he had been drawing it for? (if indeed he had).  

Some pensions pay a lump sum death benefit, but your father may have been outside the guarantee period, hence the advice that there are no benefits due to you or your siblings.

Marcon

Ben - very sorry you have lost both parents at such young ages.

Same question has been asked on the pensions forum - probably best to confine answers to that thread to save OP and those answering having to flip back and forth: https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6395871/death-and-pension-unavailable#latest

Maybe board guide could move/merge accordingly to make simpler for everyone?

DullGreyGuy

Without knowing the details everything is going to be speculation... based on it being 47 years I'm going to guess it was a DB scheme rather than DC. 

It isnt uncommon for DB schemes to only pay to the legal spouse (but if that at date of retirement, death or something else can vary). Ultimately this is how DB schemes are in anyway possible... some live massively longer than expected and their payments for life are funded by those that pass away early. Obviously great for those that live into old age but can understand how it sucks for those that survive those that die younger.

Some schemes do have child benefits but it tends to be limited until the child becomes 18 or 21 if in full time education. You dont say how old you and your brothers are?

If you think you were supposed to get something then you need to get a copy of the scheme rules. 

Misslayed

Merge requested

Keep_pedalling

State pensions end when you die, defined benefits pensions (which it sounds like your father had) continue to be paid to a spouse but otherwise finish on the recipients death.

There are no pots of money associated with these type of pensions a few people may draw them for 49 years and a few may never reach pensionable age but the recipient is guarantied payment for life which makes them very valuable to those who still have them. If he had a defined contribution type pension or SIPP then anything left can be passed on to family, but either he would have had to pay in a lot more to receive the the same income or b even on a much reduced income.