Pension Award Letter

Rip_Van

molerat said:

So you will be getting more than £185.15 ?

If your forecasts all along have been showing £185.15, or the equivalent "full pension" each year, then you should not really be receiving any more as in normal circumstances any figure above the maximum should have been in place since April 2016.

Yes, £204.57, so I'm dubious about it. Also confused. As I said I reach SPA  in Jan 23.

Marcon

Rip_Van said:

molerat said:

So you will be getting more than £185.15 ?

If your forecasts all along have been showing £185.15, or the equivalent "full pension" each year, then you should not really be receiving any more as in normal circumstances any figure above the maximum should have been in place since April 2016.

Yes, £204.57, so I'm dubious about it. Also confused. As I said I reach SPA  in Jan 23.

Did your forecasts include a 'COPE' figure at the top of the first page? If so, it could be that a former employer has been tidying up its pension scheme data (or more accurately the trustees of the pension scheme have) and some historic issues have now been corrected. 

jennystarpepper

Is this due to the increase on SP next year?  Looked at mine a couple of days ago and I think the higher amount is the increase for 2023. 

p00hsticks

Rip_Van said:

Dazed_and_C0nfused said:

Rip_Van said:

Hi all, I reach state pension age in January next year and have received my award letter dated 3rd October 2022. That's fine but the amount is more than my spouse is currently getting, which would be fine too but I don't want the state coming back to me because they've overpaid. 
Anyone got experience of this or similar?

What relevance do you think your spouse's State Pension has to your award 🤔

Do you understand that you are under the transitional rules for the new State Pension?

Have you checked your forecast to make sure it's what you would expect?

"Have you checked your forecast to make sure it's what you would expect?"

Did check my forecast, many times, it was £185.15.

Are you sure ? It will have only said £185.15 since April this year, what were values on th previosu times you checked. 

I suggest you re-check and take a copy while you still can, as I dont believe it will be available once you reach SRA

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

 

Dazed_and_C0nfused

jennystarpepper said:

Is this due to the increase on SP next year?  Looked at mine a couple of days ago and I think the higher amount is the increase for 2023. 

If gov.uk have implemented a change before parliamentary approval is given I'd be amazed.

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/families-and-individuals-in-families-benefitting-from-the-up-rating-of-benefits-2023-to-2024/estimated-number-and-type-of-gb-families-and-individuals-in-families-benefitting-from-the-up-rating-of-benefits-in-2023-to-2024

xylophone

Yes, my award letter says £818.28 every four weeks.(£204.57 per week).
From memory(?) the forecast was the (standard?) £185.15.

Do you have a copy of any forecast you have obtained since 6/4/16?

It is perfectly possible for a person in receipt of New State Pension to have been awarded an amount in excess of it.

See the link to the guide in my previous.

However, if this is the case for you, then your forecast should always have been in excess of a full NSP.

For example, take Joe Bloggs who would reach SPA in May 2022.

He was employed and paying NI as required.

In 2016, his state pension forecast was for £175.65.

This was £20 in excess of the full NSP 2016-17.

That £20 was his "protected payment".

He could not increase his SP, through his NI contributions (although he would need to continue to pay them) but his SP would be protected from inflation.

The amount of the pension that was equal to full NSP would go up with the "triple lock" (except last year) while the "protected  payment" would go up by CPI.

Thus, when he came to draw his SP in May 2022, he received a full NSP of £185.15 plus a protected payment of £22.44 -  £207.59 

https://techzone.abrdn.com/public/pensions/Tech-guide-new-state-pension

Rip_Van

Just checked my forecast (again). It now says £204.57.

Linton

As Xylophone explains it looks like you were paying a reasonable amount in SERPs prior to 2016 without major periods of being contracted-out and so accrued more than the new standard rate of SP.  Under those circumstances you keep your excess but your SP has not benefitted from tany of he NI you paid since 2016.