(Update 4th April 2011 - Pension Minister Steve Webb tonight announced more details on the proposed flat-rate pension. Read my article The flat-rate pension proposals in bullet points for the full low-down.)
The UK must have one of the most complex state pension scheme in the world and trying to explain the complexities to someone of retirement age would have them dozing off in the armchair within seconds.
Let me explain - There is a Basic State Pension, a Second State Pension, plus some State Earnings Related Pension, or SERPS, plus the Graduated Pension. All of the above have different qualification criteria and come from contributions in different years. On top of all this pensioners can claim a complicated means-tested Pension Credit to top up any pension to a total of £132 per week, which consists of a Guaranteed Credit and a Savings Credit.
Hello! Are you still there? Ok, it's complicated but life is complicated so why do we need to change?
Why are things changing?
Well, there are two major problems with the current system:
- It discriminates against women - they receive less state pension than men because although they are credited into the National Insurance system, when they are stay at home mums or working part-time, it's a lower amount than men are credited when they work full-time.
- Because of its heavy reliance on means-testing it discourages private pension savings as these will simply be negated by a loss in benefits. This will be exacerbated by the auto-enrolment in the new national pension scheme (NEST) where workers will be automatically put in a pension scheme, which may ultimately be of no extra benefit to them.
What are the proposed changes?
Well details are thin on the ground at the moment and we may know more after the Budget on 23 March, but here is what was announced yesterday
- Basic State Pension to rise to £140 or there abouts
- End to mean-testing
- Unlikely to effect those already retired or close to retirement as won’t come into affect until 2015
- Could be linked to a higher retirement age
So what are the major advantages of the changes?
- Simplicity – SERPS, pension credits and S2P will likely be scrapped to fund the changes.
- Improved pension for many, particularly women
- Make NEST more beneficial
- End to means-testing?
Conclusion
At first sight it appears that Santa has returned for pensioners, but obviously it's time to revisit the old clichés about "free lunches" and "if it looks to good to be true" etc. This is not a hand out by the Government by really an attempt to simplify things, make NEST workable and of course raise the retirement age.
Final details of how all this will work in practice (especially with regard to SERPS etc) will likely appear on the Budget on March 23rd. Pension Minister Steven Webb claimed yesterday that the new system will still be based on NI contributions and credits but years spent years spent looking after children will count towards the new flat-rate state pension
But one thing for sure is that stay at home mum’s will quite rightly benefit under the system but it will almost certainly be at the expense of others. Watch this space
It happens to me that my SEPS pension (which was about 40 pounds a week) is now worthless.
It has effectively been confiscated and given to women.
I might not be absolutelt worse off. But my best friend’s company used a private pension plan instead of SERPS. So he now has a much larger pension than me because his state pension will rise to 140 and he receives his private pension. So I am relativley worse off.
And I fail to see the fairness of a system where by another friend who is 5 months older than me will receive his pension 15 moths before I do.
Thanks for the info Damien – I thought that might be the case but it was worth checking!
Roger
I have read that the new rates will not apply to existing pensioners.
Does “existing” mean those already claiming now or those who will already be claiming a pension in 2015/16?
Assuming that it will apply to those claiming before the new rates kick in, any idea what will happen to people who, say, reach 65 this year but put off claiming the state pension until after the “new” one kicks in?
Regards,
Roger
Roger,
Unfortunately ‘existing’ refers to those who are claiming and those entitled to claim by 2015/16 (i.e. those who will have reached their state retirement age).
So if you reach state retirement age before the new pension changes come in there is no scope for your to defer taking your state pension so that you can benefit from the new flat-rate pension. If you do defer then you will still fall under the current regime.
Hope that helps
Damien
Is it correct that the heating allowance has been altered
Hi Eileen
I think you are referring to the Winter Fuel Allowance – and the answer is ‘yes it has’.
I cover this in full in my article Winter fuel allowance secretly cut in the Budget
I hope that helps.
Best Wishes
Damo
I am already retired and draw my state pension, which is made up of Basic Pension plus pre-1997 additional state pension (to which I paid extra), plus post-1997 additional state pension (to which I also paid extra) – totalling more than £140 a week.
Under the proposed changes to the system (ie a flat rate £140 a week) will I be penalised, despite having paid in quite a lot extra (SERPS) over many years to help me in my old age?
According to the latest announcements in the Budget the new flat rate pension (which is years away from being implemented) will only affect those yet to retire. But watch this space.
Best wishes
Damo