New Capita-run Civil Service Pension Scheme - problems (what a surprise!)

calic0

I've had a similar issue to YorkshireGenes on page 10. On 1 Jan HMRC notified me that my tax code had changed. I logged on to my HMRC account and found out this was because they had been notified (presumably by Capita) that I was receiving my Civil Service pension twice over - although the two amounts were slightly different. On 2 Jan I checked my HMRC account again and was surprised to see that the two pensions were still there, but the latest one (which supposedly has been in payment since early December 2025) had increased to over £200K! HMRC have taken this as gospel, changed my tax code according and told me I should expect to pay slightly over £100K in income tax this year. In truth my only income is a modest civil service pension and state retirement pension. This should keep me busy / amused trying to sort out this mess!

slartybartfast69

following on from some very helpful comments and suggestions i have just written to my MP using "writetothem", in the meantime i was on hold for 1:56 and got cut off, number 125 down to number 72, now back on at number 63, absolute joke, i would imagine there are people who have planned their retirement and are now struggling financially, the worse part is the lack of comms

horsewithnoname

calic0 said:

I've had a similar issue to YorkshireGenes on page 10. On 1 Jan HMRC notified me that my tax code had changed. I logged on to my HMRC account and found out this was because they had been notified (presumably by Capita) that I was receiving my Civil Service pension twice over - although the two amounts were slightly different. On 2 Jan I checked my HMRC account again and was surprised to see that the two pensions were still there, but the latest one (which supposedly has been in payment since early December 2025) had increased to over £200K! HMRC have taken this as gospel, changed my tax code according and told me I should expect to pay slightly over £100K in income tax this year. In truth my only income is a modest civil service pension and state retirement pension. This should keep me busy / amused trying to sort out this mess!

You can change the estimated amount of income via your tax account. 

Golactico

In case it is helpful to anyone, please feel free to cut and paste any bits that you might find useful from the text (copied below) of the email that I have sent to my MP today. I have put in bold the bit that refers to my personal circumstances which will obviously need to be excluded, or replaced with a brief summary of your personal situation. 

Dear (MP's name),

You may be aware that the last Government awarded the contract for administration of the Civil Service Pension Scheme to Capita (I will resist inserting the very well deserved ‘r’ after the C!).

Capita took over the contract in December just gone, and it is being well documented through the media and online forums that their service so far has been a complete shambles. Although I feel personally aggrieved by the fact that none of my circa 35yrs service record is showing on their useless online portal, I am fortunate as there are 3 years before I draw my Civil Service pension, so hopefully plenty of time to get my details in good order.  My immediate concern is for the poor Civil Servants that are currently trying to draw their pensions and are dealing with unanswered emails and fruitless 4 hour waits on helplines, while they suffer the stress of financial hardship through not getting the pensions that some have worked all their lives for. I am hoping that you might put some pressure on the Cabinet Office (who are responsible for the Capita contract), to get them to ensure that Capita urgently meet their contractual obligations and provide a fit for purpose service in return for the £239 Million of tax payers’ money that they are being paid.

What__A_Shower

Morning everyone, newbie here! Just thought I would add my experience with civil service pensions and capita.
30 years working for the civil service and last September I started the ball rolling for a glorious retirement which was planned for January this year. Everything was going fine, had my quote, options and application paperwork completed and returned by end of October 2025... Then Capita took over. 
Now I am officially retired but sadly it's not very glorious and I have no pension or lump sum to enjoy. I have contacted capita on several occasions, the latest being yesterday 87 in line and a wait of 4 hours and 46 minutes which resulted in a 3 minute chat with a very fed up customer advisor. The result being the same as the previous calls in that my paperwork was visible on the system and my case was apparently with the finalisation team(whatever that means) and no further info or timeline was available. 
My thought is to allow a couple of weeks and then try again. If this gets me nowhere then I will look at submitting a complaint and perhaps contacting my local MP. 
Any advice from forum members would be very welcome. Sorry for rambling on, just feel like I am at the mercy of Capita with little alternative but to wait for them to sort things out. Hopefully not too long as I am now on zero income! 

katejo

What__A_Shower said:

Morning everyone, newbie here! Just thought I would add my experience with civil service pensions and capita.
30 years working for the civil service and last September I started the ball rolling for a glorious retirement which was planned for January this year. Everything was going fine, had my quote, options and application paperwork completed and returned by end of October 2025... Then Capita took over. 
Now I am officially retired but sadly it's not very glorious and I have no pension or lump sum to enjoy. I have contacted capita on several occasions, the latest being yesterday 87 in line and a wait of 4 hours and 46 minutes which resulted in a 3 minute chat with a very fed up customer advisor. The result being the same as the previous calls in that my paperwork was visible on the system and my case was apparently with the finalisation team(whatever that means) and no further info or timeline was available. 
My thought is to allow a couple of weeks and then try again. If this gets me nowhere then I will look at submitting a complaint and perhaps contacting my local MP. 
Any advice from forum members would be very welcome. Sorry for rambling on, just feel like I am at the mercy of Capita with little alternative but to wait for them to sort things out. Hopefully not too long as I am now on zero income! 

I saw a very similar complaint (but much less detailed) on another forum just yesterday. Perhaps it was yours? I noticed it because I am due to retire and start taking my pension (DB but not  Civil Service) and have been asking questions about exactly when to notify SAUL. I really feel for you. 

horsewithnoname

What__A_Shower said:

Morning everyone, newbie here! Just thought I would add my experience with civil service pensions and capita.
30 years working for the civil service and last September I started the ball rolling for a glorious retirement which was planned for January this year. Everything was going fine, had my quote, options and application paperwork completed and returned by end of October 2025... Then Capita took over. 
Now I am officially retired but sadly it's not very glorious and I have no pension or lump sum to enjoy. I have contacted capita on several occasions, the latest being yesterday 87 in line and a wait of 4 hours and 46 minutes which resulted in a 3 minute chat with a very fed up customer advisor. The result being the same as the previous calls in that my paperwork was visible on the system and my case was apparently with the finalisation team(whatever that means) and no further info or timeline was available. 
My thought is to allow a couple of weeks and then try again. If this gets me nowhere then I will look at submitting a complaint and perhaps contacting my local MP. 
Any advice from forum members would be very welcome. Sorry for rambling on, just feel like I am at the mercy of Capita with little alternative but to wait for them to sort things out. Hopefully not too long as I am now on zero income! 

People where I work have been contacting their MPs, the cabinet office, the pension ombudsman, if you are still in your union or retirement group, try them. 

Fact is that successive iterations of the Covil Service’s employers loathe civil servants and have made the public do so too. (Hope the truth isn’t too political 🙄) so there isn’t very much any of us can do. 

alri08

My situation is similar to What__A_Shower, I started my claim in the summer, had my quote, options and application paperwork completed and returned by end of October 2025, expecting pension to be paid in January 2026. The crucial difference for me is the CS pension is not my only source of income.

I too feel like I am at the mercy of Capita with little alternative but to wait. I don't have any brilliant advice or suggestions to offer, just my sympathy.

westv

horsewithnoname said:

What__A_Shower said:

Morning everyone, newbie here! Just thought I would add my experience with civil service pensions and capita.
30 years working for the civil service and last September I started the ball rolling for a glorious retirement which was planned for January this year. Everything was going fine, had my quote, options and application paperwork completed and returned by end of October 2025... Then Capita took over. 
Now I am officially retired but sadly it's not very glorious and I have no pension or lump sum to enjoy. I have contacted capita on several occasions, the latest being yesterday 87 in line and a wait of 4 hours and 46 minutes which resulted in a 3 minute chat with a very fed up customer advisor. The result being the same as the previous calls in that my paperwork was visible on the system and my case was apparently with the finalisation team(whatever that means) and no further info or timeline was available. 
My thought is to allow a couple of weeks and then try again. If this gets me nowhere then I will look at submitting a complaint and perhaps contacting my local MP. 
Any advice from forum members would be very welcome. Sorry for rambling on, just feel like I am at the mercy of Capita with little alternative but to wait for them to sort things out. Hopefully not too long as I am now on zero income! 

People where I work have been contacting their MPs, the cabinet office, the pension ombudsman, if you are still in your union or retirement group, try them. 

Fact is that successive iterations of the Covil Service’s employers loathe civil servants and have made the public do so too. (Hope the truth isn’t too political 🙄) so there isn’t very much any of us can do. 

What about the King? Aren't civil servants supposed to be employed by him to do his Government's business?
Seriously though, the cynic in me says that all you'll get from MPs and the cabinet office is platitudes

Suba

People keep saying on here that they can see there reckonable years u can’t see any of that. What page is it on? I’m waiting for my partial retirement quote. I doubt if I’ll get it in time. I just can’t see anything about my pension at all.