ChatterBank1 min ago
Employer Took Pension
can an employer take money from your pension that they think you owe them? They have told me I was overpaid and I appealed this but didn't hear anything.I retired 2 weeks after this. They now seem to have taken thousands from my gratuity..Can they do this?
Answers
I think there is a difference here between criminal & civil law. Probably what has been done is not criminal, but does it breach civil law? For example if a creditor wants to get money from a debtor he cann ot just ask the debtor's bank to give it to him. He has to go to Court, get a County Court Judgement & then follow the enforcement procedure to get it from the bank. I...
17:24 Thu 04th Jul 2013
I think we need you to clarify exactly what the pension/gratuity payments were, how the salary over-payment occurred, whether they had already asked you to repay and why it doesn't seem to have come to light until just before you retired. As things stand the story sounds incomplete to me.
Without all the facts we can't be sure we can proper advice. If you can't tell us everything but genuinely believe ou have a civil case I suggest you contact a solicitor
Without all the facts we can't be sure we can proper advice. If you can't tell us everything but genuinely believe ou have a civil case I suggest you contact a solicitor
I will leave the legal side of recovery of the sum to the guys.
Have you received a final decision on your appeal disputing the overpaid wage? Are you disputing that you have been overpaid or the amount that has been overpaid?
Has your employer told you that the £10k that is 'missing' has been taken by them to repay this overpayment of wage?
Is it a large company or a small one - you would think that a large company would know what it is doing.
Have you received a final decision on your appeal disputing the overpaid wage? Are you disputing that you have been overpaid or the amount that has been overpaid?
Has your employer told you that the £10k that is 'missing' has been taken by them to repay this overpayment of wage?
Is it a large company or a small one - you would think that a large company would know what it is doing.
Factor, it is an immediate pension with a lump sum gratuity. The gratuity is increased with commutation thus lowering the immediate pension for 10 years. I maintain that they have the right to have a go at "wages" but not my pension. The bit I read if I recall was based on the fact that wages were earned income therefore, could be hit but pensions were not. Oh if I could find that little nugget.
I think there is a difference here between criminal & civil law. Probably what has been done is not criminal, but does it breach civil law?
For example if a creditor wants to get money from a debtor he cann ot just ask the debtor's bank to give it to him. He has to go to Court, get a County Court Judgement & then follow the enforcement procedure to get it from the bank. I think the same should apply here IF the money has been taken from a pension fund rather than from something which is withheld salary. I'm not familiar with Civil Service pension schemes but in other occupational ones the pension fund is run by trustees & is quite separate from the employer. What is here called a gratuity is a lump sum commutation paid out of the pension fund - not out of the employer's money.
If the same applies here, I would say the employer has not acted correctly. A complaint or request for full explanation should be made.
For example if a creditor wants to get money from a debtor he cann ot just ask the debtor's bank to give it to him. He has to go to Court, get a County Court Judgement & then follow the enforcement procedure to get it from the bank. I think the same should apply here IF the money has been taken from a pension fund rather than from something which is withheld salary. I'm not familiar with Civil Service pension schemes but in other occupational ones the pension fund is run by trustees & is quite separate from the employer. What is here called a gratuity is a lump sum commutation paid out of the pension fund - not out of the employer's money.
If the same applies here, I would say the employer has not acted correctly. A complaint or request for full explanation should be made.
Maybe as they are the ones who made all the contributions into your pension pot there was something in the terms and conditions that allowed them to take back any money you owed them before they handed it over to the 'paymaster' company.
I recall there used to be some provision to withhold all the non-contributory pension for some civil servants in certain circumstances (eg if they were dismissed for fraud- which isn't what happened here of course)
I recall there used to be some provision to withhold all the non-contributory pension for some civil servants in certain circumstances (eg if they were dismissed for fraud- which isn't what happened here of course)