Capita-utter farce-wrong details

[Dennis Lewis]

Thanks MichaelJ and N60 for your postings re tax account. I will see if my tax is sorted by this month's payment and if not I'll use the link provided on here. Capita are probably trying to get things all sorted by the end of the tax year (gawd help us ). Keep posting guys/ Pleased your pension went through MJ and that your tax finally sorted N60 (we shouldn't have had to jump through all these obstacles though).

[Black7]

Latest update on my case.
I contacted Debra Soper, Chief Operating officer for pensions at the cabinet office on 18/02/2019. Never received a reply until now, from one of her staff. Debra Sopers email debra.soper@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Dear Sir,
Royal Mail Statutory Pension Scheme – Complaint
Thank you for your e-mail dated 18th February 2019 which was sent to Debra Soper, Head of Civil Service and Royal Mail Pensions. I have been asked to reply.
I am very sorry to hear that you have encountered difficulties in claiming benefits due to you on reaching age 60. I appreciate you letting me know of your experience.
I understand your concerns and frustration, particularly as this process was started in September 2018. I agree that the service you have received from Capita is not acceptable. This is not the service that we would expect or wish for members to experience from our pension administrator.
I have made enquiries into the circumstances of your case and Capita have told me that your benefits have now been processed into payment. The pension lump sum was credited to your bank account on 19 February 2019 and the disinvestment of your Additional Voluntary Contribution (AVC) fund is currently in progress.
We are aware that the transition of services from Royal Mail Group’s Pension Service Centre has not been as smooth as we would have liked. We are working very closely with Capita to understand and resolve outstanding issues, particularly where benefits are due to be brought into payment. Capita is committed to keeping members informed in respect of the payment of their benefits so please accept my sincere apologies as this hasn’t been the case in your experience.
I have asked Capita to provide a full account of why this issue was not highlighted sooner and why it has taken so long to make payment to you. I will direct Capita to make an ex-gratia payment to you of £50 in respect of the failure to pay your lump sum at the correct time in January 2019, the failure to promptly address the issue and for not keeping you properly informed.
Once again I thank you for bringing this matter to my attention.
Karen Wilson
Governance Manager, Civil Service &
Royal Mail Pensions
Cabinet Office
Priestley House | Priestley Road | Basingstoke | RG24 9NW
E: karen.wilson@cabinetoffice.gov.uk T 01256 846548 M: 07525 354092

£50 isn't much all things considered but its a start. I felt compelled to contact the cabinet office as this issues needs to be highlighted at government level.
It might be worth others to consider emailing Debra Soper to emphasise that this is not an isolated incident.
For now, I'm waiting to see if Richard Kirwan is as good as his word as my case/claim progresses.
Dave

[Steve_claret]

£50 isn't much all things considered but its a start. I felt compelled to contact the cabinet office as this issues needs to be highlighted at government level.
It might be worth others to consider emailing Debra Soper to emphasise that this is not an isolated incident.
For now, I'm waiting to see if Richard Kirwan is as good as his word as my case/claim progresses.
Dave

Agreed. The more complaints that are sent to the Cabinet Office the better. At least they will then be aware that people are unhappy with the service they have received from Capita since the contract was awarded.

Hopefully their service will get better in the future but I have reservations as these type of contracts are usually awarded on a cost reduction before quality of service basis. As they say, if you pay peanuts then you will get monkeys.

Enjoy your £50

[Dennis Lewis]

Latest update on my case.
I contacted Debra Soper, Chief Operating officer for pensions at the cabinet office on 18/02/2019. Never received a reply until now, from one of her staff. Debra Sopers email debra.soper@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

Dear Sir,
Royal Mail Statutory Pension Scheme – Complaint
Thank you for your e-mail dated 18th February 2019 which was sent to Debra Soper, Head of Civil Service and Royal Mail Pensions. I have been asked to reply.
I am very sorry to hear that you have encountered difficulties in claiming benefits due to you on reaching age 60. I appreciate you letting me know of your experience.
I understand your concerns and frustration, particularly as this process was started in September 2018. I agree that the service you have received from Capita is not acceptable. This is not the service that we would expect or wish for members to experience from our pension administrator.
I have made enquiries into the circumstances of your case and Capita have told me that your benefits have now been processed into payment. The pension lump sum was credited to your bank account on 19 February 2019 and the disinvestment of your Additional Voluntary Contribution (AVC) fund is currently in progress.
We are aware that the transition of services from Royal Mail Group’s Pension Service Centre has not been as smooth as we would have liked. We are working very closely with Capita to understand and resolve outstanding issues, particularly where benefits are due to be brought into payment. Capita is committed to keeping members informed in respect of the payment of their benefits so please accept my sincere apologies as this hasn’t been the case in your experience.
I have asked Capita to provide a full account of why this issue was not highlighted sooner and why it has taken so long to make payment to you. I will direct Capita to make an ex-gratia payment to you of £50 in respect of the failure to pay your lump sum at the correct time in January 2019, the failure to promptly address the issue and for not keeping you properly informed.
Once again I thank you for bringing this matter to my attention.
Karen Wilson
Governance Manager, Civil Service &
Royal Mail Pensions
Cabinet Office
Priestley House | Priestley Road | Basingstoke | RG24 9NW
E: karen.wilson@cabinetoffice.gov.uk T 01256 846548 M: 07525 354092

£50 isn't much all things considered but its a start. I felt compelled to contact the cabinet office as this issues needs to be highlighted at government level.
It might be worth others to consider emailing Debra Soper to emphasise that this is not an isolated incident.
For now, I'm waiting to see if Richard Kirwan is as good as his word as my case/claim progresses.
Dave

Good on you! Enjoy your fifty quid - agree it isn't much these days but it's a start. I will be emailing next week - thanks for the link. I emailed the cabinet office a while back and had an apology reply re my late pension from Dominic Arthur (posted earlier) but no £50 . I totally agree that this fiasco from Capita needs to be raised at government level by as many of us as possible. This is people's lives and so far they seem untouchable - we don't even get a proper apology from Capita, it comes from the cabinet office - who for some strange reason seem unaware of things (so where's their monitoring?). Keep sharing info.

[gbooker]

Well 5 weeks late I finally received my lump sum and backdated pension for February.
As you would expect, absolutely no correspondence from Capita to tell me this. I knew from calling the escalation team and keeping an eye on my bank account.

I just want to forget this whole miserable episode. As far as I am concerned everyone in a managerial role at both the Cabinet Office and Capita are a bunch of c***s and have done bugger all to resolve any of the issues in the 6 months since they took over the contract.

I was going to seek compensation but based on that £50 offer in a previous post I just can't be bothered with the effort and aggravation this will involve. I just want a quiet and easy life, which it has been anything but until now with this saga.

I would like to change my bank account that my pension will be paid into but might give that a month or two before I embark on what will no doubt be another lengthy drawn out affair to achieve a job so simple a child could do.

Thank you and goodnight.
Gary.

[N60]

Well 5 weeks late I finally received my lump sum and backdated pension for February.
As you would expect, absolutely no correspondence from Capita to tell me this. I knew from calling the escalation team and keeping an eye on my bank account.

I was going to seek compensation but based on that £50 offer in a previous post I just can't be bothered with the effort and aggravation this will involve. I just want a quiet and easy life, which it has been anything but until now with this saga.

I would like to change my bank account that my pension will be paid into but might give that a month or two before I embark on what will no doubt be another lengthy drawn out affair to achieve a job so simple a child could do.

Thank you and goodnight.
Gary.

great you've finally got your pension and lump sum ..... but real shame it's caused you so much aggravation It does sound like you'd qualify for some compensation but can understand the thought of applying is off putting.

I think the £50 mentioned earlier was just an ex-gratia payment authorised by the Cabinet Office as a bit of a sop. It doesn't appear to be a fully worked out compensation payment which is down to the Pensions Ombudsman to do and is based on a whole set of issues and depending on their decision can be in excess of £2,000

The Ombudsman can award
- "Financial redress" to put you back into the position you would have been in if everything had been done correctly (basically lost interest on late payments) so you're not out of pocket.
and
- "Non financial redress" for the significant inconvenience, disappointment, distress caused by the inconvenience and the time and effort spent trying to sort the problem out including the anxiety, anger, disappointment and embarrassment caused by Capita's failings.

The terms and wordings are from the Pensions Ombudsman web site on their "Putting Things Right" page, I've attached a link - on the webpage you'll see a fact sheet (about halfway down the page) that has some useful info including a scale for the "Non financial" redress awards ranging from £0 to over £2,00 depending on severity.

Here's the link https://www.pensions-ombudsman.org.uk/g" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; ... ngs-right/

So, if you do at sometime feel more like going for compensation it could be worth a lot more than £50. Good luck if you do go for it.

[N60]

Thanks Black7 for the email address for Debra Soper at the Cabinet office, I'll be adding my "feedback" to her in box soon.

In addition .... not sure if anyone here is a member of the NFOP (national federation of occupational pensioners) but in this months magazine there's a copy of the annual report and accounts included. Not my favourite reading but an article caught my eye; a report about the transfer of RMSPS to Capita.

To quote it said
"The transition has generally been successful.Three months pensions have been paid by the end of 2018 and there were no major failures although some one off issues of importance to the members affected have been identified. NFOP will be meeting with the Cabinet office for a full review of the transition......"

So, it looks like Capita are classifying and reporting us as individual "one-off problems" rather than viewing us collectively and admitting/reporting a problem with their administration of the scheme so far.

At the end of the article there is a footnote saying ...."John asks that members contact him if there are any issues which he needs to raise with the Governance Group, email john@john-hearn.eu"

If as many folk as possible email him it would give him an understanding that the problems are not one-offs as Capita would have the Governance Group believe but symptomatic of significant failings in Capita's management and process. I'll be adding him to my mailing list.

[Dennis Lewis]

Thanks N60 - Will be emailing your contacts along with Debra Soper. My Capita free weekend hasn't worked this week (ha-ha)

[Dennis Lewis]

Well 5 weeks late I finally received my lump sum and backdated pension for February.
As you would expect, absolutely no correspondence from Capita to tell me this. I knew from calling the escalation team and keeping an eye on my bank account.

I just want to forget this whole miserable episode. As far as I am concerned everyone in a managerial role at both the Cabinet Office and Capita are a bunch of c***s and have done bugger all to resolve any of the issues in the 6 months since they took over the contract.

I was going to seek compensation but based on that £50 offer in a previous post I just can't be bothered with the effort and aggravation this will involve. I just want a quiet and easy life, which it has been anything but until now with this saga.

I would like to change my bank account that my pension will be paid into but might give that a month or two before I embark on what will no doubt be another lengthy drawn out affair to achieve a job so simple a child could do.

Thank you and goodnight.


Gary.

I hope N60's reply will be of some help but agree that sometimes it isn't worth the hassle and I'm sure Capita will come out looking good no matter what any of us does. Anyway all the best.

[Dennis Lewis]

Hi guys,

I emailed John Hearn from the National Federation of Occupational Pensioners (thanks for the contact details N60 ). Unlike Capita, I got a quick and courteous reply from him and it seems that things have been even worse than we realise with Capita, I quote from his reply

'For the moment let me make two very brief points. First the report to conference represents what we were told during 2018. The actual position is very much worse than even you portray. That is why I ask that when members have problems they let me (and NFOP HO) know asap. Advance notice means that we can intervene sooner than 'they' would wish. '

So I do implore everyone who has had problems with Capita to report it (John Hearn is at a funeral tomorrow though so perhaps leave this until later in the week.) We need to bring Capita to task and they should be kicked into touch as they are clearly unfit for purpose.

Email: john@john-hearn.eu

[N60]

Hi guys,

I emailed John Hearn from the National Federation of Occupational Pensioners (thanks for the contact details N60 ). Unlike Capita, I got a quick and courteous reply from him and it seems that things have been even worse than we realise with Capita, I quote from his reply

'For the moment let me make two very brief points. First the report to conference represents what we were told during 2018. The actual position is very much worse than even you portray. That is why I ask that when members have problems they let me (and NFOP HO) know asap. Advance notice means that we can intervene sooner than 'they' would wish. '

So I do implore everyone who has had problems with Capita to report it (John Hearn is at a funeral tomorrow though so perhaps leave this until later in the week.) We need to bring Capita to task and they should be kicked into touch as they are clearly unfit for purpose.

Email: john@john-hearn.eu

Dennis, Thanks for the feedback - I'm off away for a few days (spending some of the lump sum ) so won't get to email John Hearn right now I will email him at the end of the week though when I'm back (and his funeral is done with) - it sounds like the more he knows about the Capita problems the more he can do - great stuff. Did you tell him about this thread and the others on the notice board ? If not I'll be sure to mention it in my email.

[Dennis Lewis]

Hi guys,

I emailed John Hearn from the National Federation of Occupational Pensioners (thanks for the contact details N60 ). Unlike Capita, I got a quick and courteous reply from him and it seems that things have been even worse than we realise with Capita, I quote from his reply

'For the moment let me make two very brief points. First the report to conference represents what we were told during 2018. The actual position is very much worse than even you portray. That is why I ask that when members have problems they let me (and NFOP HO) know asap. Advance notice means that we can intervene sooner than 'they' would wish. '

So I do implore everyone who has had problems with Capita to report it (John Hearn is at a funeral tomorrow though so perhaps leave this until later in the week.) We need to bring Capita to task and they should be kicked into touch as they are clearly unfit for purpose.

Email: john@john-hearn.eu

Dennis, Thanks for the feedback - I'm off away for a few days (spending some of the lump sum ) so won't get to email John Hearn right now I will email him at the end of the week though when I'm back (and his funeral is done with) - it sounds like the more he knows about the Capita problems the more he can do - great stuff. Did you tell him about this thread and the others on the notice board ? If not I'll be sure to mention it in my email.

Yes I mentioned this thread and the other threads - quote from my email:

Well that's not the experience from ex-posties. The transition has been an absolute disaster for a good many of us. There are now three on-line forums with around 200 postings from stressed-out ex-posties nationwide all experiencing an absolute nightmare with Capita trying to get their pensions activated. Take a look at our main forum 'capita-utter farce-wrong details' to see first-hand what has really happened with this transition.

Personally my pension and lump sum was seven weeks late. I had tried to contact them eighteen times about this all without success. And there was me thinking it was their job to contact me. My pension and lump sum was eventually activated but ONLY THEN because I had emailed Capita CEO Jon Lewis (the only one from Capita to act)

Even I was a bit shocked when he said 'the actual position is very much worse than even you portray' (Surely they can't be that bad can they? Time for my yellow vest and boxing gloves )..... Enjoy your break

[gbooker]

Hi all,
An update.

I just received an email from Carol Hainsworth (Carol.Hainsworth@rmsps.co.uk) apologising for the delay in processing my pension and lump sum and an offer of £200 as a gesture of goodwill.

Better than nothing.

In the letter it states "A letter of confirmation should have been sent to you at the time to advise you about this payment" Want to guess if I have had this letter?

It only took her just under 4 weeks to reply to my email to customer.relations.pensions@capita.co.uk on 16/02/2019.

So it looks like this is a bit better than the paltry £50 offer from the Cabinet Office.

All in all, this has been an experience I would not wish on anyone.
Regards,
Gary.

[Black7]

Update on my case.
I emailed the cabinet office to express my disgust with the treatment by Capita.
Todays response
Dear Sir
Thank you for your e-mail dated 12th March 2019. I am sorry you feel the ex-gratia payment offered was insufficient, this was offered as a good will gesture in recognition of the delays you experienced with the payment of your benefits and not as a financial redress payment.
There is no provision within the rules of the scheme for payments to be made on a given date, the aim is that benefits will be paid as close to a member’s chosen retirement date as possible.
To answer your concerns about why Capita were awarded this contract a robust and open OJEU (Official Journal of the European Union) procurement competition, consisting of multiple stages was conducted during 2016/17. In October 2017, Capita Employee Benefits Ltd. were selected as the winning bidder because their overall offering was considered the best value against the evaluation criteria.
The Cabinet Office considered a wide range of requirements of which only a minority of these related to cost and commercial matters.
The selection criteria was set to determine not only the best value for money but to also ensure that a quality administration function would be in place to deliver a quality service to our scheme members.
There were five bidders initially, with three shortlisted for the final stage, from which the bid from Capita Employee Benefits Ltd was adjudged to be the most fit for scheme members and the taxpayer.
Cabinet Office retains responsibility for managing the scheme and will be directly involved in monitoring and directing Capita as they deliver the administration services. This will be achieved through a structured governance framework that enables the openness and transparency that is required in managing such a contract.
The RMSPS is also subject to oversight by an independent Governance Group that includes representatives from a range of interested parties. I can assure you that both the Governance Group and Cabinet Office will be working closely with Capita to make sure RMSPS members receive a high level of service in the future.
I have asked Capita to reply to you directly concerning the reasons for the delays you experienced.
Yours sincerely

Karen Wilson

Governance Manager, Civil Service &

Royal Mail Pensions

Cabinet Office

Priestley House | Priestley Road | Basingstoke | RG24 9NW

E: karen.wilson@cabinetoffice.gov.uk T 01256 846548 M: 07525 354092
So there is no provision of a payment date.
Basically, Cabinet Office don't give a toss and seems to have set the bar pretty low for customer service too.
If Capita were the best , the other four must be out of business by now.
I too have contacted John Heard.
Think Carol Hainsworth is my next email, thanks for address gbooker

[N60]

I wrote to John Hearn today and like Dennis I got a very swift reply, similar to the one Dennis got, in addition John Hearn also mentioned that it looks like we won't get any PI letters (just like we're not getting any pension payslips !). If that's the case I think Capita will find themselves inundated with enquiries and requests, here's what John Hearn said .......

" ......The actual position is very much worse than even you portray, and there is even a reluctance to issue the pension increase letters. They think it will reduce the workload but they’ll find out the hard way that members will be on the phone asking when the letters will issue, and then another querying how the calculation was made .... .....I ask that when members have problems they let me (and NFOP HO) know asap. "

Basically it looks like Capita are doing the bare minimum on the admin front and cutting corners to save costs .... this one could backfire though as they'll probably end up spending more on dealing with all the enquiries/complaints regarding PI than the cost of just sending out the letters out in the first place

We'll see what April brings.