NHS Pension - Have I joined too late?

hufc2002

Hi all

I am approaching 41 and will have been employed by the NHS for 25 years at the end of this year.  I didn't however join the pension scheme until December 2011.

My current contribution rate is 9.8% and my employers contribution is 23.7% of my pensionable pay (not really sure what that means).

My ultimate question is have I joined too late and is there anything else I can do?

Thanks 

QrizB

It would have been worse if you hadn't joined at all!

My ultimate question is have I joined too late and is there anything else I can do?

When you say "do", what are you trying to achieve?

If you're seeking more pension, you could buy more pension in the NHS scheme (added pension or AVCs) or you could start a standalone pension somewhere else?

Moonwolf

It is never too late.

If you work in the NHS for another 27 years until pension age, in todays money, without promotions you will have a pension that is larger than half your current salary* plus full state pension which is £11,500 a year.

*Each of 27 years you will have added 1/54th of your salary and each year the previous years accumulated pension will have grown by inflation + 1.5%, that compounds up over 27 years.  The actual figure will depend on how your payrises follow inflation.

If you think you might want a bigger pension then you need to look at the different options for adding to it.

Marcon

hufc2002 said:

Hi all

I am approaching 41 and will have been employed by the NHS for 25 years at the end of this year.  I didn't however join the pension scheme until December 2011.

My current contribution rate is 9.8% and my employers contribution is 23.7% of my pensionable pay (not really sure what that means).

My ultimate question is have I joined too late and is there anything else I can do?

Thanks 

The employer's contribution is a purely notional figure, given to members in what is usually a vain attempt to help them understand just what a great scheme they are in.

Joined too late for what? When you say 'do', what are you trying to achieve?

hufc2002

I am not really sure what I am trying to achieve but if I can somehow put myself in a better position (similar to what I would have been in had I joined on day 1) then what can I do to achieve this?

MK62

hufc2002 said:

I am not really sure what I am trying to achieve but if I can somehow put myself in a better position (similar to what I would have been in had I joined on day 1) then what can I do to achieve this?

You can buy more NHS scheme pension........or you can pay into AVCs attached to the NHS scheme, or you can pay into a completely separate pension with a third party provider.....or save into an ISA (though pension might be better, but some prefer the greater flexibility an ISA provides).

Moonwolf

hufc2002 said:

I am not really sure what I am trying to achieve but if I can somehow put myself in a better position (similar to what I would have been in had I joined on day 1) then what can I do to achieve this?

Funnily enough I just posted a link to this old comment of mine on another thread.

Options for increasing your pension if you are in the NHS  https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/78669411#Comment_78669411

However, it would cost a bomb to get you where you would have been. 

Better to just try and picture what a good retirement might look like.  It is always a balance between being happy with your lifestyle now and the one you envisage in the future.  Ideally you get the best of both, not too impoverished now or then, the best you can get with the resources you have.  

This pinned thread might help you think about what you might need, also think about how soon https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/2146737/pensions-planning-the-number#latest

Marcon

hufc2002 said:

I am not really sure what I am trying to achieve but if I can somehow put myself in a better position (similar to what I would have been in had I joined on day 1) then what can I do to achieve this?

The only way to put yourself in a better position is either to earn more (so your pensionable salary increases), or make much bigger personal contributions either to the NHS scheme, or to a personal pension of your own choice while staying in the NHS scheme.

The chances of putting yourself in the position you would have been in had you joined in 2000 are frankly zero, so looking back with regret, or trying to 'match' that, will only lead to distress. You'll still have a first class pension from the NHS, so try to focus on that fact rather than making yourself miserable with those useless words 'if only'. At least you joined in 2011, which is vastly better than never joining at all!

Kynthia

Have a think about how much longer you intend to work, when you want to retire, how much you'll need to live on, how much pension/savings you have so far. 

How much annual pension have you already accumulated according to your latest annual benefits statement? If you're concerned it's not enough and what you'll build until you stop working won't be enough, then getting consider additional pension.


You could sign up to buy more NHS pension, which isn't cheap but it's annual payments for life with inflation protection. Or you could save into a private  pension to build a pot. A pot can be taken flexibly and left as part of inheritance unlike DB pension which only pays out according to the scheme rules.