Local government pension refund????

sue-dai

hi there
i have paid 60 pounds a month give or take a few pound into a local government pension through my employer(local council) now at 42 i have to finish work ,due to health reasons i can no longer do my job description,is there any way i can claim any of the money back that i have paid, because if they freeze the pension by the time i reach pension age i will be lucky to have a pound a week

thanks for any advise you could give me

sue _x_

tinkerbell84

you're not retiring on ill health grounds then?

unless you've paid into the scheme for less than 2 years you won't be able to get a refund.

dunstonh

I think they have dropped it from 2 years to something like 6 months now.

Debt_Free_Chick

sue-dai wrote: »

hi there
i have paid 60 pounds a month give or take a few pound into a local government pension through my employer(local council) now at 42 i have to finish work ,due to health reasons i can no longer do my job description,is there any way i can claim any of the money back that i have paid, because if they freeze the pension by the time i reach pension age i will be lucky to have a pound a week

It'll have the same worth then as now - the pension is not "frozen" as such. You have the amount you've earned to date and it will be effectively inflation-proofed between now and retirement.

seven-day-weekend

Your pension is index-linked and so will increase every year, as DebtFreeChick says. This applies to the actual pension and the lump sum. It is not frozen, it is deferred, which means you can take it at a later date (age 60 is the earliest) and it will rise every year until you do.

I too have a deferred Local Government Pension and it has gone up 8.6% since late 2004.

Andy_L

If you are retiring on ill health they will pay you an immediate, enhanced pension. Otherwise you will have to wait till you are 60-65. As DFC & 7-day have said it will increase in line with RPI between now & then

CAE

A refund of pension contributions is now no longer possible after being in the LGPS for more than 3 months.

If unable to do your job due to ill health you should enquire about retiring on ill health grounds, as mentioned earlier. The occupational health doctor will need to certify, but you or your manager should contact your HR dept. It is best not to leave of your own accord, but wait for the doctors decision.

The rules in the LGPS concerning retirements on ill health grounds are changing from 1st April, and will move to a two tier system.

Hope this helps.