Ready for Retirement? Six simple steps to claim your pension
Retirement might have been a long-anticipated event in your life but as your last working day draws closer, the actual process of claiming your pension may seem daunting.
The length of time it takes to process and put your pension into payment varies depending on resources available and on the type of retirement you take. If you pay extra contributions in the form of AVC’s this may also mean your pension takes longer to process. If you are hoping your pension payments will start by a certain date you should contact us ahead of time to ensure plans can be put into motion well in advance.
Following these six simple steps can ensure you are on the right track to retirement:
1. The first step is to speak to your employer about retiring and agree a retirement date. If you are requesting ill health retirement, your employer will organise a medical before agreeing to ill health retirement.
2. Once you and your employer have agreed and set a retirement date, your employer will notify us.
3. Around 4-6 weeks before your retirement date, we will write out to you about your pension options. This will include your options to swap pension for lump sum.
4. Complete and return the forms we send to you.
5. After your final pay has been paid, your payroll department will pass on your final pay details to us. This is used to calculate the final value of your pension and lump sum.
6. We will write out to you once we receive your final pay details, confirming the date of your first pension payment.
Information on how much you need for a comfortable retirement can be found in our Retirement Saving Targets article.
For more information on retirement visit here.
