help with pension fund please

[matt3c]

hello all, currently experiencing a few financial problems, and im sure somewhere i have read that i can cancel the pension i have been oaying into for just over a year and maybe get the sum i have paid in? any help would be greatly appreciated thank you for your time

[calpsy]

Dont think so . MOST are locked until your retire age regardless of how much you paid in . Thats what happened to me . Phone the pension mob and ask them .

[matt3c]

u dont have any idea of the pension number do you ? have nothing at all with me so cant look through any of my stuff to find any numbers

[fishtank]

Refund of contributions http://www.royalmailpensionplan.co.uk/1 ... tributions" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

If you leave Reckonable Service before Normal Retirement Age with less than 2 years’ Qualifying Service you will be entitled to:

a refund of contributions
or
if you have at least 3 months' Qualifying Service, the option to transfer your benefits to another pension scheme.
Before you get your refund, the contributions you paid into the Plan will be adjusted:

interest will be added provided you have been a member of the Plan for at least 6 months
your share of the Contributions Equivalent Premium will be deducted from your refund to buy you back into the State Second Pension
and
a tax charge will be deducted. Currently, this is 20% on contribution refunds up to £10,800 and 40% on refunds above £10,800.
Please note: sometimes a refund cannot be paid even though you leave Reckonable Service with less than 2 years’ Qualifying Service. This includes where you:

already have a preserved pension in the Plan which you chose not to link, or were unable to link, with your current service
or
have transferred a personal pension or stakeholder pension into the Plan. In these circumstances, you will be eligible for a preserved pension (see next).


Contact us

If you have any questions about the Royal Mail Pension Plan (RMPP), then please contact us at the Pensions Service Centre, by email, post or phone:

Email: pensions.helpline@royalmail.com

Write to us at this address:

Pensions Service Centre
PO Box 500
CHESTERFIELD
S49 1WX

Call us on: 0114 241 4545

Postline network users can call on 5456 4545

Whenever you contact us, please include your full name, date of birth and either your National Insurance number or Pension Plan number.

Please let the Pensions Service Centre know if your address or personal circumstances (e.g. marital status) change.

[easter bunny]

Take advice before leaving the Pension scheme Pal....

[matt3c]

thank you very much for all the info i will get onto it today! as i said at the top of the page i am only doing this as im in a serious financial position, i hope to join the pension scheme again in maybe 6 months, when everything is sorted, do you know if i would be able to do that ?

[RobertT]

The link placed by Fishtank is for people who were in the final salary/career average plan before April 2008, as you have been paying into it for 'just over a year' I'm assuming you started after that date?

If that is the case, you are in a different pension scheme - probably the RM Defined Contribution Plan. And as far as I know you can't get a refund at all. More info here:
http://www.zurich.co.uk/royalmaildcplan ... n/faqs.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[POSTMAN]

Thanks for that Robert,we didn't have that link on here.

[fishtank]

The link placed by Fishtank is for people who were in the final salary/career average plan before April 2008, as you have been paying into it for 'just over a year' I'm assuming you started after that date?

If that is the case, you are in a different pension scheme - probably the RM Defined Contribution Plan. And as far as I know you can't get a refund at all. More info here:
http://www.zurich.co.uk/royalmaildcplan ... n/faqs.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

The refund is payable whether you leave the company or leave the plan.
Zurich offer the same choice of refund or transfer on exactly the same terms.
You cannot however opt back in once you have opted out so it would not in my opinion be a smart move.

[POSTMAN]

The website says that there is a waiting period of 12 months before you can join so chances are there is not a lot in it.

After a Waiting Period of 12 months’ continuous service with Royal Mail Group, you will automatically be included in the Plan

[POSTMAN]

The link placed by Fishtank is for people who were in the final salary/career average plan before April 2008, as you have been paying into it for 'just over a year' I'm assuming you started after that date?

If that is the case, you are in a different pension scheme - probably the RM Defined Contribution Plan. And as far as I know you can't get a refund at all. More info here:
http://www.zurich.co.uk/royalmaildcplan ... n/faqs.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

The refund is payable whether you leave the company or leave the plan.
Zurich offer the same choice of refund or transfer on exactly the same terms.
You cannot however opt back in once you have opted out so it would not in my opinion be a smart move.

Page 6 and 24...
http://zdownload.zurich.co.uk/corporate ... -guide.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[fishtank]

If you leave employment or opt out of the Plan (see page 24 for more details)

If you’ve been a contributing member for at least three months but less than two years:
You can transfer the value of your Member Account to another pension arrangement up to 12 months after leaving,
OR
You will receive a refund of the value of your Member Account in respect of your contributions (less tax)*

[RobertT]

If you’ve been a contributing member for at least three months but less than two years:

You will receive a refund of the value of your Member Account in respect of your contributions (less tax)*

I didn't get that far so thanks for pointing it out.
Although opting out and remaining employed is saying no to a lot of 'free money', so my advice would be, don't do it!

[matt3c]

is there definately no way i can take the money back i have paid in and start again? like ive previously said i am in a serious financial predicament and am desperate for the money and this is the only way i can seem to get any? thank you for everybodys help though

[POSTMAN]

Have i got this right,you've only been in the job for just over a year,so the fact you wouldn't of paid into the pension for a year anyway means there's probably nothing in it after you take out possible charges.

Would that be right?