ozboy
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Mine's a Large One! (Snigger, snigger .......)
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Post by ozboy on May 18, 2020 22:56:45 GMT
I am about to take my Pension from a Defined Benefit/Final Salary Pension Scheme and, basically, I don't trust my former Employers to get the calculations correct on the Pension they have quoted me that I will receive. In particular I need to independently check that the assumptions etc that they use in their Pension Income calculations are "fair", "reasonable" and/or "acceptable" etc. I probably need to hire an Actuary or Pensions Calculations Specialist of some kind to do this vetting/checking/auditing but wonder if learned colleagues out there can confirm that this course of action is correct, or is there another avenue to pursue? Apologies if what I am wanting to achieve is not very clear, it's late and what little articulation I possess is fast deserting me as I type.  As always, "Many Thanks" in advance. A Grateful OzBoy.  |
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agent69
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Post by agent69 on May 19, 2020 8:01:44 GMT
I am about to take my Pension from a Defined Benefit/Final Salary Pension Scheme and, basically, I don't trust my former Employers to get the calculations correct on the Pension they have quoted me that I will receive. In particular I need to independently check that the assumptions etc that they use in their Pension Income calculations are "fair", "reasonable" and/or "acceptable" etc. I probably need to hire an Actuary or Pensions Calculations Specialist of some kind to do this vetting/checking/auditing but wonder if learned colleagues out there can confirm that this course of action is correct, or is there another avenue to pursue? Apologies if what I am wanting to achieve is not very clear, it's late and what little articulation I possess is fast deserting me as I type. As always, "Many Thanks" in advance. A Grateful OzBoy. Why not try posting a question in the pensions section of the MSE site.
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Post by dan1 on May 19, 2020 8:26:16 GMT
I am about to take my Pension from a Defined Benefit/Final Salary Pension Scheme and, basically, I don't trust my former Employers to get the calculations correct on the Pension they have quoted me that I will receive. In particular I need to independently check that the assumptions etc that they use in their Pension Income calculations are "fair", "reasonable" and/or "acceptable" etc. I probably need to hire an Actuary or Pensions Calculations Specialist of some kind to do this vetting/checking/auditing but wonder if learned colleagues out there can confirm that this course of action is correct, or is there another avenue to pursue? Apologies if what I am wanting to achieve is not very clear, it's late and what little articulation I possess is fast deserting me as I type. As always, "Many Thanks" in advance. A Grateful OzBoy. I've not the foggiest about hiring an actuary, but isn't the reason final salary pensions were cut because they got all their numbers wrong in the first place Something less glib and a little more constructive. I'd recommend you do as much leg-work as you can, even if you intend to get an expert to check the figures. It depends on how complicated your scheme is, how many components (DB, CARE, AVCs, lump sum, reductions for taking it early, spouse pension etc) but for a very simple DB scheme you should be able to project forward from your date of leaving to your retirement date if you know... -final salary -years service -accrual rate (1/60th or whatever) -indexation (CPI or RPI, and when it changed, if appropriate) -indexation month (i.e. CPI/RPI from previous July (or whatever) used to increase entitlement) -is indexation applied in the first year of leaving or the final year before benefits are taken? Trying to understand as much as possible before you meet an advisor will inevitably get you better value for money.
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IFISAcava
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Post by IFISAcava on May 19, 2020 8:37:08 GMT
I am about to take my Pension from a Defined Benefit/Final Salary Pension Scheme and, basically, I don't trust my former Employers to get the calculations correct on the Pension they have quoted me that I will receive. In particular I need to independently check that the assumptions etc that they use in their Pension Income calculations are "fair", "reasonable" and/or "acceptable" etc. I probably need to hire an Actuary or Pensions Calculations Specialist of some kind to do this vetting/checking/auditing but wonder if learned colleagues out there can confirm that this course of action is correct, or is there another avenue to pursue? Apologies if what I am wanting to achieve is not very clear, it's late and what little articulation I possess is fast deserting me as I type. As always, "Many Thanks" in advance. A Grateful OzBoy. I'm a bit lost Scheme rule are scheme rules - contributions, accrual rates etc - and are usually decided by trustees of the scheme and revised periodically. Surely any assumptions are scheme wide issues affecting all members? Not sure how you can challenge them, other than basis on which they have calculated final salary, years of contributions, any reductions for early retirement etc. Perhaps there are small print issues in your scheme - in which case you would need a pensions expert for sure.
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james100
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Post by james100 on May 19, 2020 9:45:57 GMT
I am about to take my Pension from a Defined Benefit/Final Salary Pension Scheme and, basically, I don't trust my former Employers to get the calculations correct on the Pension they have quoted me that I will receive. In particular I need to independently check that the assumptions etc that they use in their Pension Income calculations are "fair", "reasonable" and/or "acceptable" etc. I probably need to hire an Actuary or Pensions Calculations Specialist of some kind to do this vetting/checking/auditing but wonder if learned colleagues out there can confirm that this course of action is correct, or is there another avenue to pursue? Apologies if what I am wanting to achieve is not very clear, it's late and what little articulation I possess is fast deserting me as I type. As always, "Many Thanks" in advance. A Grateful OzBoy. Do you mean a) take the pension as is (i.e. same location as income stream from existing provider) or b) cash equivalent value transfer? And are you concerned about a lower than expected payout due to a) overly-conservative payout rules or b) mathematical error (deliberate or not) in application of those rules? (or both). Is it deferred and if so have you looked at deferred scheme rules?
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ozboy
Member of DD Central
Mine's a Large One! (Snigger, snigger .......)
Posts: 3,156
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Post by ozboy on May 19, 2020 11:01:39 GMT
Many thanks fellow investors for your comments, much appreciated. 👌. The background is that I was Unfairly Dismissed from this Employer, took them to Tribunal, and was duly awarded the Maximum amount. They didn't like that at all and are a very vindictive bunch, so I don't trust them. james100 has clarified nicely - "Yes", my concern is that my former Employers are using " overly-conservative payout rules and/or b) mathematical error (deliberate or not) in application of those rules? (or both)."I certainly need to hire a Specialist. Thank you all again. |
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Post by bernythedolt on May 19, 2020 12:04:23 GMT
ozboy , as the years went by, was your employer not providing annual pension statements to show what you were likely to expect? Assuming some of these statements pre-date your tribunal, they will hopefully show up whether any employer 'reprisal' has crept in recently (though it's difficult to know what form that could take). My Civil Service (outsourced) pension administrators were appalling and thoroughly incompetent, so I had to learn and calculate for myself, as dan1 has said, my scheme rules, years of accrual, accrual rate, final salary (best of last three years), etc, etc. That enabled me to ask the right questions, select the right irrevocable options and ensure their figures were correct. I also endorse the MSE suggestion - there are some knowledgeable pension contributors on there. Good luck.
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