CHAPTER IV

BENEFITS

Preliminary

General qualification for benefits

19.-(1) Membership of the Scheme only entitles the member to benefits under this Chapter if-

(2) But paragraph (1) does not apply-

Calculations

20.-(1) The amount of any benefit payable as a result of a person's membership is generally calculated by multiplying his final pay by the appropriate multiplier.

(2) Unless another multiplier is indicated, the appropriate multiplier for a pension is-

 

the member's total membership.

80

 

(3) Unless another multiplier is indicated, the appropriate multiplier for a retirement grant is-

 

3 x the member's total membership.

80

 

(4) But benefits payable on or after the death of a pensioner member are calculated by multiplying the amount of his former retirement pension by the multiplier specified for the benefit in question.

(5) Unless otherwise indicated, references to the amounts of pensions are to their annual rate.

(6) The amount of a deceased person's former retirement pension is the amount of the pension he would have received immediately before his death, but for-

(7) Periods are measured in years and fractions of a year (calculated as specified in regulation 11).

(8) A pensioner member includes a person who would have been entitled to a pension but for regulation 110 (application of abatement policy in individual cases).

(9) But paragraph (8) does not stop a person to whom it applies from also being an active member.

 

Final pay

21.-(1) A member's final pay for an employment is his pay for as much of the final pay period as he is entitled to count as active membership in local government employment (but see paragraphs (3) to (10), regulations 22 and 23(2) and Schedule 4).

(2) A member's final pay period is the year ending with the day on which he stops being an active member (but see paragraph (9) and regulations 22 and 23).

(3) In the case of part-time employment, the final pay is the pay which would have been paid for a single comparable whole-time employment.

(4) But in calculating death grant or the rate of surviving spouse's or children's short-term pension payable on the death of an active member, actual pay in part-time employment is to be used.

(5) Any reduction or suspension of a member's pay during the final pay period because of his absence from work owing to illness or injury must be disregarded for this Chapter.

(6) If a member's final pay period includes reserve forces service leave, his final pay is-

(7) If a member is absent from work for any other reason during his final pay period, he is only to be treated for this Chapter as having received the pay he would otherwise have received if he has made the appropriate contributions under Chapter III for the period he is absent.

(8) If in any case where regulation 13(5) (collective pay agreements) applies to a member's pay during any part of the final pay period-

it is to be determined using them.

(9) If a member is only entitled to count part of the year specified in paragraph (2) as a period of active membership in relation to the employment which he ceases to hold, his final pay is his pay during that part multiplied by 365 and divided by the number of days in that part.

(10) Final pay does not include any pension in payment.

 

Other final pay periods

22.-(1) Where the whole or part of a member's pay consists of fees, his final pay period for them is not the period specified in regulation 21(2) but-

(2) But if he was only entitled to receive fees during part of the period mentioned in paragraph (1)(a), that part is substituted for the period referred to in that paragraph.

(3) If a member has been absent from work during any part of the year specified in regulation 21(2), his final pay period is the last 365 days he is entitled to count as a period of active membership.

(4) A member may elect that instead of his final pay period being determined under regulation 21(2) or paragraph (1), (2) or (3) above, it should instead be-

(5) Where paragraph (1) or (2) applies or a member elects for the period specified in paragraph (4)(b), as respects so much of his pay as consists of fees his final pay is the annual average of his fees during his final pay period.

(6) An election under this regulation by a member must be made by notice in writing given to the appropriate administering authority before the expiry of the period of one month beginning with the day he is notified of his entitlement to a benefit.

(7) Where a member has died without having made an election under this regulation, the appropriate administering authority may make an election on his behalf (whether or not the period within which he could have elected has expired).

Permanent reductions in pay: certificates of protection of pension benefits

23.-(1) Where a certificate has been issued as respects a member's pay under paragraph (3) or (4) and the date of reduction or, as the case may be, restriction specified in the certificate is not more than 10 years before the date on which he ceases to be an active member, he may elect that his final pay period should be-

(2) Where a member elects for the period specified in paragraph (1)(b), his final pay is the annual average of his pay during that period.

(3) If, otherwise than by virtue of a member's own circumstances-

he is entitled to be issued with a certificate to that effect by the employing authority (but see paragraph (4)).

(4) The employing authority may issue a certificate without an application from the member, but need not issue a certificate if he does not apply for one within 12 months after the date of reduction or restriction.

(5) A certificate issued under this regulation must specify the date of the reduction or restriction.

(6) The employing authority must send a copy of the certificate to the member's appropriate administering authority.

(7) The employing authority must keep a record of the certificate including such information as would be necessary for applying paragraph (1) for the period of 10 years beginning with the date of reduction or restriction specified in it.

(8) An election under this regulation by a member must be made by notice in writing given to the appropriate administering authority before the expiry of the period of one month beginning with the date on which he is notified of his entitlement to a benefit.

(9) Where a member has died without having made an election under this regulation, the appropriate administering authority may make an election on his behalf (whether or not the period within which he could have elected has expired).

Revenue limits

24. Schedule 4 contains restrictions on the amounts of benefits which a member is entitled to under the Scheme.

Retirement benefits

Normal retirement

25.-(1) If a member who has attained his normal retirement age retires from a local government employment, he is entitled to a pension and retirement grant.

(2) The pension and grant are payable immediately.

(3) The normal retirement date ("NRD") of a member who was not a member immediately before the commencement date is his 65th birthday.

(4) The NRD of a member who was a member immediately before the commencement date is-

(5) A member's normal retirement age is his age on his NRD.

(6) If a member's NRD or normal retirement age needs to be determined before he attains that age, it must be assumed that his local government employment and membership will be continuous.

Redundancy etc.

26.-(1) If-

he is entitled to a pension and retirement grant.

(2) The pension and grant are payable immediately.

(3) But a person who is notified under regulation 15 of the Local Government (Compensation for Redundancy) Regulations 1994 about compensation due because regulation 9 of those Regulations applies to his retirement may waive his right to immediate payment by notice in writing to his employing authority.

(4) In paragraph (1) "redundancy" includes retirement in the interests of efficiency, or because the member held a joint appointment which has been ended because the other holder has left it.

Ill-health

27.-(1)  Where a member leaves a local government employment by reason of being permanently incapable of discharging efficiently the duties of that employment because of ill-health or infirmity of mind or body, he is entitled to an ill-health pension and grant.

(2) The pension and grant are payable immediately.

(3) A member-

is entitled to an ill-health grant (but not a pension), unless paragraph (4) applies to him.

(4) This paragraph applies to a member if-

Amounts of ill-health pension and grant

28.-(1) Where the member's total membership is at least 5 years, the multiplier for an ill-health pension or grant is by reference to the member's enhanced membership period instead of his total membership.

(2) A member's enhanced membership period is-

(3) But the enhanced membership period must not exceed 40 years or the total membership the member would have had if he had continued as an active member until he was 65, whichever is the shorter.

(4) If the member became entitled to ill-health benefits under the Scheme before he was in the employment from which he has retired, his enhanced membership period must be calculated-

(5) Where membership includes membership in part-time employment, the enhanced membership period must be calculated by first working out what it would be if the employment were all whole-time, and then reducing the resulting period by the appropriate fraction (but see paragraph (8)).

(6) The appropriate fraction is the fraction of which the numerator is the member's total membership and the denominator is the period which would be his total membership if his employment had all been whole-time.

(7) In the case of a member in part-time employment with non-cyclical fluctuating contractual hours, that fraction must be determined by making separate calculations for each period over which averaging of the member's hours occurs in calculating his contractual hours.

(8) If the member's total membership includes a period of at least 13 122/365 years in whole-time employment, paragraph (5) does not apply.

(9) If a member is entitled under regulation 27(3) to an ill-health grant (but not a pension), the multiplier for the grant is-

the member's total membership.

12

Re-employed pensioners

29.-(1) Where a member is entitled to two retirement pensions because of having been a member in two employments which were not concurrent, he may elect for a single new pension.

(2) If he elects, he becomes entitled to a single retirement pension and retirement grant, each calculated by reference to the augmented period (but see paragraph (7)).

(3) The augmented period is the member's total membership in the later employment, increased by the period which would have been aggregated if he had made an election under regulation 32(1) as respects his earlier employment when he became an active member in his later employment.

(4) But if the retirement pension from the earlier employment was calculated using a longer period of membership than the period which is the augmented period under paragraph (3), the longer period is the augmented period for paragraph (2).

(5) No election may be made if the pension for the earlier employment-

(6) The member must set off any retirement grant he received because of his membership in the earlier employment ("the first grant") against the retirement grant under this regulation and, if it was greater, repay the difference between the grants to the new authority.

(7) Any additional period which did not count in the calculation of the first grant because of regulation 54(3), does not count in calculating the retirement grant under this regulation either.

(8) Any surrender of the pension from the earlier employment operates to the same extent on the single pension, but the surrendered pension is payable by the new authority.

(9) Where the later retirement is one to which regulation 27 (ill-health) applies and the member does not become entitled to a single pension-

Further provisions about elections under regulation 29

30.-(1) An election under regulation 29 must be made by giving notice in writing to the new authority.

(2) The new authority is the appropriate administering authority for the pension from the later employment.

(3) The election must be made before the expiry of the period of three months beginning with the date the member becomes entitled to the pension for the later employment and has effect from that date.

(4) If a member does not repay any amount due under paragraph (6) of regulation 29 before the expiry of the period of three months beginning with the date he elects, his election is void (and so he is not entitled to the single pension).

 

Other early leavers: deferred retirement benefits and elections for early payment

31.-(1) If a member leaves a local government employment (or is treated for these regulations as if he had done so) before he is entitled to the immediate payment of retirement benefits (apart from this regulation), once he is aged 50 or more he may elect to receive payment of them immediately.

(2) An election made by a member aged less than 60 is ineffective without the consent of his employing authority or former employing authority (but see paragraph (6)).

(3) If the member elects, he is entitled to a pension and retirement grant payable immediately.

(4) If the sum-

(a) of the member's age in whole years on the date his local government employment ends or the date he elects, if later,

(b) of his total membership in whole years, and

(c) in a case where he elects after his local government employment ends, of the period beginning with the end of that employment and ending with the date he elects,

is less than 85 years, his retirement pension and grant must be reduced by the amounts shown as appropriate in guidance issued by the Government Actuary (but see paragraphs (5) and (6) and regulation 36(5) (GMPs)).

(5) A member's appropriate employing authority may determine on compassionate grounds that his retirement pension and grant should not be reduced under paragraph (4).

(6) If a member who has left a local government employment before he is entitled to the immediate payment of retirement benefits (apart from this regulation) becomes permanently incapable of discharging efficiently the duties of that employment because of ill-health or infirmity of mind or body-

(7) If a member does not elect for immediate payment under this regulation, he is entitled to receive a pension and grant payable from his NRD without reduction.

(8) An election under paragraph (1) must be made by notice in writing to the member's Scheme employer.

Re-employed and rejoining deferred members

32.-(1) Where a deferred member becomes an active member again before becoming entitled to the immediate payment of retirement benefits in respect of his former membership, he may elect to have his former membership aggregated with his membership on or after the date he becomes an active member again.

(2) But an election may only be made by a Class B member as respects former Class B membership or Class C membership and an election may only be made by a Class C member as respects former Class C membership.

(3) Where a member elects under paragraph (1)-

(4) Where an election under paragraph (1) is made by a member who has ceased to be an active member more than once, the election may be made as respects his total membership at each of the times he so ceased or only as respects such of those periods of membership as are specified in the election.

(5) Where a member who may elect under paragraph (1) does not do so or does not elect as respects all periods of his membership-

and references in these provisions to his appropriate administering authority or appropriate fund shall be construed accordingly.

(6) For this regulation a period of membership is an unaggregated period if-

(7) An election under paragraph (1) must be made by notice in writing to the member's appropriate administering authority in the employment in which he becomes an active member again whilst he is an active member in that employment.

(8) If the appropriate fund for membership in the new employment is different from that for any former employment as respects which the member is making the election, the notice under paragraph (7) must also be given to his appropriate administering authority in that former employment.

(9) References in this regulation to former membership include all membership which the member was entitled to count as total membership immediately before he ceased his former active membership (but excluding any unaggregated period).

(10) Where a person ceases to be an active member in one employment and immediately becomes an active member in another employment with a different Scheme employer, for paragraph (1) of this regulation he shall be treated as if he were a deferred member as respects the first employment, despite never having ceased to be an active member of the Scheme.

Surrenders of pension

33.-(1) A member may apply to the appropriate administering authority to surrender part of the retirement pension which is or may become payable to him, so that, if he is survived by his spouse or a dependant of his ("the beneficiary"), the equivalent value of that part is paid instead to the beneficiary under this regulation.

(2) The application must be made in the period of one month ending with or one month beginning with the date on which the member retires.

(3) The authority must allow the application if they think the member is in good health.

(4) The surrender must not result in a pension being paid to the beneficiary of less than such amount as is specified in guidance issued for this paragraph by the Government Actuary.

(5) The aggregate amount surrendered must not-

(6) On the death of the member the beneficiary becomes entitled to a pension at a rate equivalent to the value of the surrender in the beneficiary's favour at the time when the surrender was made.

(7) The equivalent rate is such rate as is indicated in guidance issued by the Government Actuary.

(8) If the surrender is allowed, it has effect from the date the member retires from his employment.

(9) But it does not take effect if the beneficiary or member dies before that date, and it ceases to have effect if the beneficiary dies before the member.

No double entitlement.

34.-(1) Where (apart from this regulation) any member would be entitled to a pension or retirement grant under two or more regulations by reason of the same period of membership-

(2) An election by a member must be by notice in writing, given to the employing authority before the expiry of the period of three months beginning with the day on which he becomes entitled to elect.

(3) Paragraph (1) does not affect the member's rights under the Pension Schemes Act 1993.

Requirements as to time of payment

35.-(1) Retirement benefits under this Chapter may not be paid to a person before he has retired from the employment in which he was a member.

(2) But they must begin to be paid not later than the member's 75th birthday even if he has not retired (and see also regulation 36(3)).

Guaranteed minimum pensions etc.

36.-(1) Where a member's local government employment is contracted-out employment and he has a guaranteed minimum in relation to service before 6th April 1997, from the date he attains state pensionable age he is entitled to a pension at a weekly rate equal to not less than that guaranteed minimum.

(2) But if the member attains state pensionable age while in local government employment, he is not so entitled until he leaves that employment, unless paragraph (3) applies.

(3) If the member-

he is entitled from the end of that period to so much of his retirement pension as equals that guaranteed minimum (unless he consents to a postponement of the entitlement).

(4) For paragraph (1), a person has a guaranteed minimum if he has such a minimum under section 14 of the Pension Schemes Act 1993 in relation to benefits under these Regulations.

(5) A person's retirement pension is not to be reduced under regulation 31(4) to less than the aggregate of-

(6) In paragraph (5) "the relevant date" means-

(7) Where a person's local government employment is or was contracted-out employment, a surrender under regulation 33 (together with any previous surrenders) must not result in the annual rate of the retirement pension being less than one eightieth of his final pay multiplied by the length in years of the whole period of his membership in contracted-out employment beginning with the relevant date and ending with 30th April 1995.

(8) Where a person making a surrender under regulation 33 has a guaranteed minimum, the surrender (together with any previous surrenders) must not result in the weekly rate of the retirement pension being less than the guaranteed minimum.

(9) Where a person making a surrender under regulation 33-

references in paragraphs (7) and (8) to the retirement pension are references to the retirement pension which would become payable if he ceased to hold his employment on the day the surrender takes effect.

(10) This regulation overrides any provision in these Regulations to the extent to which it conflicts with it, except-

Revaluation of guaranteed minimum

37.-(1) Where the guaranteed minimum of a person who has ceased to be an active member is appropriately secured, his earnings factors for the purposes of section 14(2) of the Pension Schemes Act 1993 must be determined-

(2) For such a person the weekly equivalent mentioned in section 14(2) of the Pension Schemes Act 1993 is to be increased-

(3) In this regulation-

Death grants

Death grants

38.-(1) If a member dies, the administering authority may make payments to or for the benefit of the member's nominee or any person appearing to the authority to have been his relative or dependant at any time.

(2) The aggregate amount paid under paragraph (1) must not exceed the member's death grant.

(3) The multiplier for an active member's death grant is 2.

(4) The multiplier for a deferred member's death grant is

the same as for his retirement grant.

(5) The multiplier for a pensioner member's death grant is 5, but the amount so calculated is reduced by the amounts of any retirement pension paid to him.

(6) If the administering authority have not made payments under paragraph (1) equalling in aggregate the member's death grant before the expiry of the period of 2 years beginning with his death, they must pay an amount equal to the shortfall to the member's personal representatives.

(7) For these Regulations, any payments made under paragraph (1) must be treated as payments made by way of death grant.

Reduction of death grants: re-employed pensioners

39.-(1) If-

the death grant payable because of his membership in the further employment must be reduced (or extinguished) to the extent necessary to prevent his total pension benefits exceeding (or further exceeding) his relevant final pay.

(2) A person's total pension benefits are the total of-

(3) A person's relevant final pay is the greater of-

(4) The pay for an employment must be adjusted for inflation by calculating the amount to which it would have increased if it were an official pension becoming payable from the end of that employment.

Surviving spouses' pensions

Surviving spouse's short-term pension.

40.-(1) If an active or pensioner member dies leaving a surviving spouse, the spouse is entitled to a short-term pension.

(2) It is payable for three months after the member's death.

(3) But if there are eligible children in the spouse's care, it is payable for a further three months.

(4) Where the deceased was an active member, the short-term pension is equal to the deceased's final pay.

(5) Where the deceased was a pensioner member, the short-term pension is equal to his retirement pension immediately before the death (but see regulation 42).

(6) In this regulation "pensioner member" includes a person whose retirement pension has been commuted under regulation 50 (exceptional ill-health).

(7) If there is more than one surviving spouse, they become jointly entitled under paragraph (1).

Surviving spouse's long-term pension.

41.-(1) If a member dies leaving a surviving spouse, the spouse is entitled to a spouse's long-term pension.

(2) If the deceased was an active or pensioner member, the long-term pension is payable from the end of the period for which the short-term pension is payable.

(3) The long-term pension payable on a deferred member's death is payable from the death.

(4) If the deceased was an active member with a total membership of at least two years, the long-term pension is equal to half the ill-health pension to which the deceased would have been entitled under regulation 27 if he had become entitled to a pension under that regulation on the date he died.

(5) If the deceased was an active member with a total membership of less than two years or a deferred member, the multiplier for the long-term pension is-

the deceased's total membership

160

 

(but see regulation 42).

(6) If the deceased was a pensioner member, the long-term pension is equal to half his retirement pension immediately before the date of death (but see regulation 42).

(7) If there is more than one surviving spouse, they become jointly entitled under paragraph (1).

 

Reduction of some surviving spouses' pensions

42.-(1) Where a male pensioner member or deferred member marries and dies, the pension to which his widow is entitled under regulation 40 or 41 is calculated as if his retirement pension were only so much of his actual pension as is attributable to the period of his membership in contracted-out employment after 5th April 1978.

(2) Except in the case of a short term pension payable to the widower of an active member, the pension to which a widower is entitled under regulation 40 or 41 is calculated as if the member's retirement pension were only so much of her actual pension as is attributable to her membership after 5th April 1988.

(3) But relevant additional membership also counts as membership after that date.

(4) Relevant additional membership is membership-

Surviving spouse's guaranteed minimum pension.

43.-(1) If the GMP rule applies, the pension to which a person is entitled under regulation 40 or 41 must be not less than the surviving spouse's guaranteed minimum.

(2) The GMP rule applies if-

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